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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. bank — for money
  3. bank — of a river
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. present — the time now
  7. bank — for money
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. spring — the season
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. present — there
  12. charge — a price
  13. sharp — clever
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — rain
  16. march — music
  17. bat — the animal
  18. spring — a coil
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. charge — in control
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. charge — electricity
  24. spring — of water

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