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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. march — the month
  3. land — ground
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fine — high quality
  6. march — the month
  7. charge — electricity
  8. land — a country
  9. cold — not warm
  10. charge — in control
  11. land — to come down
  12. bank — for money
  13. fine — all right
  14. staff — a stick
  15. bank — for money
  16. march — music
  17. staff — employees
  18. charge — a price
  19. spring — of water
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — an illness
  22. spring — the season
  23. bank — of a river
  24. fine — a penalty

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