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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: rule · wind · coach · kick · season · cold · rash · bank

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bank — for money
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. rule — government
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. rash — a series
  9. kick — in football
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bank — for money
  12. season — in sport
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rule — a law
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. bank — of a river
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cold — an illness
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. wind — moving air
  23. season — of the year
  24. coach — a trainer

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