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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: march · kid · board · bass · firm · cell · bank · mate

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. kid — child
  3. mate — a partner
  4. march — music
  5. bass — low music
  6. board — to get on
  7. cell — in biology
  8. march — the month
  9. firm — steady
  10. mate — a friend
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — to tease
  13. firm — decided
  14. bank — of a river
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bank — for money
  17. cell — a phone
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. bank — for money
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. mate — to breed
  23. board — a committee
  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