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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.

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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: cue · bound · craft · file · scale · mate · mug · march

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. march — the month
  3. mug — to rob
  4. bound — certain
  5. mate — to breed
  6. scale — size or range
  7. scale — in music
  8. bound — obliged
  9. mug — a cup
  10. cue — a signal
  11. march — the month
  12. file — a line of people
  13. march — music
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. file — a tool
  16. craft — a skill
  17. craft — boats
  18. mate — a partner
  19. cue — a hint
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. mate — a friend
  22. cue — for pool
  23. bound — tied together
  24. file — a document

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