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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. fall — to drop
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. fall — the season
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bank — for money
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. spring — the season
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bank — of a river
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. bank — for money
  16. spring — of water
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cold — not warm
  20. spring — a coil
  21. cold — an illness
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — happy

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