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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: march · cell · cold · spring · bay · rock · plane · bank

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. spring — a coil
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. cell — in biology
  6. spring — the season
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. cell — a phone
  10. bank — of a river
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. march — the month
  14. spring — of water
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — for money
  17. rock — music
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — not warm
  20. plane — a tool
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. rock — a stone
  23. cold — an illness
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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