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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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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: bat · rash · march · bank · ground · squash · staff · net

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. rash — hasty
  3. ground — a position
  4. ground — crushed
  5. bank — for money
  6. rash — a series
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. bank — of a river
  13. net — in sport
  14. staff — employees
  15. squash — the sport
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. net — for catching
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bank — for money
  20. march — music
  21. staff — a stick
  22. squash — to crush
  23. net — after costs
  24. bat — the animal

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