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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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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: wound · deal · march · bay · wake · spring · cap · firm

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. cap — a lid
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. firm — a company
  5. deal — to handle
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. firm — decided
  10. wake — a trail
  11. cap — a hat
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. spring — a coil
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — the season
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. cap — of ice
  22. march — the month
  23. wound — an injury
  24. deal — an agreement

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