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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 120 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: face · cell · rash · march · season · kid · firm · current

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. cell — in biology
  3. firm — a company
  4. kid — to tease
  5. march — the month
  6. face — part of the head
  7. rash — hasty
  8. current — of water
  9. firm — steady
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. current — electric
  12. cell — a phone
  13. season — of the year
  14. march — the month
  15. season — in sport
  16. march — music
  17. current — happening now
  18. face — to point toward
  19. rash — a series
  20. face — to confront
  21. firm — decided
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. rash — on the skin

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