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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: lie · march · bound · scale · wind · bowl · fan · press

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. bound — tied together
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bound — obliged
  9. wind — moving air
  10. press — to push
  11. bound — certain
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. lie — to recline
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. press — a publisher
  18. scale — size or range
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. wind — moving air
  22. scale — in music
  23. press — newspapers
  24. march — the month

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