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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 120 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: lie · object · march · bass · cold · land · perch · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. pop — soda
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. march — music
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — a thing
  9. bass — the fish
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. march — the month
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bass — low music
  15. lie — to recline
  16. land — a country
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — not warm
  19. pop — music
  20. perch — the fish
  21. land — ground
  22. march — the month
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. land — to come down

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