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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pass — a permit
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. clip — a video
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. spring — a coil
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. foot — a measure
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bank — for money
  20. bank — of a river
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. clip — for paper
  23. march — the month
  24. clip — to cut

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