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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: march · swing · row · mine · lie · key · safe · band

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. key — in music
  3. march — the month
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. swing — in golf
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. row — a line
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. band — a ring
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. march — the month
  16. march — music
  17. key — for a lock
  18. swing — music
  19. key — the most important part
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. row — to paddle
  22. mine — for digging
  23. band — a music group
  24. swing — to play on

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