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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: cold · march · key · bank · spell · calf · coach · capital

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. march — the month
  4. key — the most important part
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. spell — magic
  7. cold — an illness
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bank — for money
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. spell — letters
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. key — in music
  14. march — music
  15. key — for a lock
  16. spell — a short time
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. bank — of a river
  20. march — the month
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a city
  23. bank — for money
  24. cold — not warm

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