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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: plane · coach · roll · pass · stand · bat · march · spring

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. march — the month
  8. roll — a list
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — the season
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. march — music
  13. bat — the animal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. stand — to bear
  18. march — the month
  19. plane — a tool
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. roll — a cake
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. pass — a permit

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