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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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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. march — the month
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. rush — hurry
  6. bank — of a river
  7. shower — rain
  8. pitch — completely
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. march — the month
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. land — ground
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. land — to come down
  16. cell — in biology
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. bank — for money
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. bank — for money
  22. cell — a phone
  23. shower — to wash
  24. march — music

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