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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: bank · march · content · band · spring · bay · mine · can

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bank — of a river
  4. can — to be able to
  5. band — a ring
  6. spring — of water
  7. can — a tin
  8. bank — for money
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. march — music
  11. band — a music group
  12. bank — for money
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. spring — the season
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. march — the month
  17. can — a tin
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. content — happy
  20. content — the amount
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. spring — a coil
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. march — the month

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