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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. cell — in biology
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. field — farmland
  6. bank — for money
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. field — a subject
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. march — the month
  12. band — a music group
  13. march — music
  14. cue — for pool
  15. cell — a phone
  16. cue — a signal
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. field — for sport
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. bank — of a river
  21. band — a ring
  22. march — the month
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. bank — for money

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