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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. bank — for money
  3. court — of a king
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. march — music
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. firm — decided
  8. bank — for money
  9. bear — the animal
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. court — for sport
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. march — the month
  15. firm — steady
  16. kid — to tease
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. bear — the animal
  21. march — the month
  22. kid — child
  23. court — of law
  24. firm — a company

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