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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: march · suit · spring · kid · drill · plane · bank · board

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. suit — to fit
  3. march — the month
  4. suit — in cards
  5. board — a committee
  6. suit — clothes
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. kid — child
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bank — of a river
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. spring — a coil
  13. kid — to tease
  14. board — to get on
  15. bank — for money
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. plane — a tool
  18. drill — a practice
  19. march — the month
  20. spring — the season
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. spring — of water
  23. bank — for money
  24. drill — army training

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