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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 120 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. bank — for money
  3. can — a tin
  4. last — finally
  5. can — a tin
  6. rash — a series
  7. can — to be able to
  8. bank — for money
  9. march — music
  10. pop — music
  11. march — the month
  12. club — for dancing
  13. last — final
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bank — of a river
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — a group
  18. fall — the season
  19. march — the month
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pop — soda
  22. last — to go on
  23. pop — to visit
  24. fall — to drop

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