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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: game · spring · bowl · mark · drill · march · mine · firm

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. march — the month
  5. spring — of water
  6. march — the month
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. spring — a coil
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. firm — decided
  12. drill — army training
  13. firm — a company
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. firm — steady
  20. spring — the season
  21. drill — a practice
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mark — a grade

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