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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. lie — to recline
  3. cap — a hat
  4. march — music
  5. march — the month
  6. bank — for money
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ground — a position
  9. field — farmland
  10. march — the month
  11. cap — of ice
  12. field — for sport
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bank — of a river
  15. cap — a lid
  16. ground — crushed
  17. ground — the earth
  18. field — a subject

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