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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: leaves · lean · march · tear · rash · bay · capital · cold

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. capital — a city
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. lean — to bend
  7. cold — not warm
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rash — hasty
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. tear — to rip
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. rash — a series
  16. lean — thin
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. capital — money
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. tear — from crying
  24. cold — an illness

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