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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: spring · rash · row · bass · mug · mark · file · march

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. bass — the fish
  4. rash — a series
  5. mug — a face
  6. file — a tool
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mug — a cup
  9. row — a line
  10. march — music
  11. spring — the season
  12. mug — to rob
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. rash — hasty
  15. bass — low music
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — of water
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. march — the month
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. mark — a grade
  24. row — to paddle

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