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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. mark — a trace
  3. drill — the tool
  4. drill — a practice
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. march — the month
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. march — music
  10. bank — for money
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — to tease
  13. fall — to drop
  14. march — the month
  15. prune — to trim
  16. fall — to drop
  17. drill — army training
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. mark — a grade
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bank — for money
  23. bank — of a river
  24. prune — the fruit

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