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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: cold · face · march · staff · bear · spring · prune · present

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. present — the time now
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. face — to point toward
  5. march — the month
  6. bear — the animal
  7. march — music
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. staff — employees
  10. present — there
  11. staff — a stick
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. bear — the animal
  15. staff — employees
  16. prune — to trim
  17. present — a gift
  18. face — part of the head
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. march — the month
  21. prune — to trim
  22. face — to confront
  23. cold — not warm
  24. spring — the season

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