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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wind · row · bound · mine · chip · march · can · bowl

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. row — to paddle
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. chip — to eat
  6. march — music
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bound — tied together
  9. wind — moving air
  10. march — the month
  11. can — a tin
  12. can — a tin
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. row — a line
  15. mine — for digging
  16. chip — for betting
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bound — obliged
  19. march — the month
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. bound — certain
  22. can — to be able to
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. mine — an explosive

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com