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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. present — a gift
  3. cap — of ice
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. bank — for money
  6. cap — a hat
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. cold — not warm
  9. present — there
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. march — the month
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. bank — for money
  14. cold — an illness
  15. march — the month
  16. cap — a lid
  17. wake — a trail
  18. bank — of a river
  19. present — the time now
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. march — music
  24. mine — for digging

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