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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: season · pound · game · suit · toast · cold · face · bank

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. game — a match
  4. toast — bread
  5. season — of the year
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. season — in sport
  8. face — part of the head
  9. cold — an illness
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bank — for money
  14. game — wild animals
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bank — of a river
  17. suit — to fit
  18. suit — in cards
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. suit — clothes
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bank — for money
  24. pound — a weight

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