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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. staff — employees
  3. rest — what's left
  4. net — in sport
  5. rest — a break
  6. march — the month
  7. march — music
  8. clip — for paper
  9. bore — to drill
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. rest — what's left
  12. net — after costs
  13. bank — for money
  14. bank — for money
  15. staff — employees
  16. bore — to tire
  17. staff — a stick
  18. kid — to tease
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. kid — child
  21. clip — to cut
  22. clip — a video
  23. march — the month
  24. net — for catching

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