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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: stand · pound · lean · date · pass · cold · nail · march

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. cold — not warm
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. lean — thin
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. march — the month
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. pound — a weight
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. date — the fruit
  17. cold — an illness
  18. lean — to bend
  19. stand — to bear
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pass — a permit
  23. march — the month
  24. pound — for dogs

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