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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. ball — a great time
  3. track — to keep track
  4. march — the month
  5. track — a song
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bank — for money
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — of a river
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. march — music
  13. ball — a dance
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. cold — not warm
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. chair — a leader
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. track — a path
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. fork — in a road
  24. march — the month

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