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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bank — for money
  3. cold — an illness
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. net — for catching
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bank — for money
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. chest — of your body
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. pass — a permit
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. march — music
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. march — the month
  17. chest — a box
  18. march — the month
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bank — of a river
  21. net — in sport
  22. net — after costs
  23. bulb — for light
  24. cold — not warm

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