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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: spring · can · cold · firm · cabinet · march · staff · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. firm — steady
  3. firm — a company
  4. staff — employees
  5. march — the month
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. chest — of your body
  9. staff — employees
  10. firm — decided
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. chest — a box
  15. march — music
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. can — a tin
  18. march — the month
  19. can — to be able to
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. staff — a stick
  22. spring — the season
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. can — a tin

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