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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.

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: mate · march · pop · cold · staff · rash · capital · wave

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. march — the month
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. staff — employees
  5. mate — to breed
  6. pop — to visit
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. march — music
  10. cold — an illness
  11. rash — hasty
  12. pop — soda
  13. march — the month
  14. staff — employees
  15. capital — money
  16. mate — a partner
  17. staff — a stick
  18. capital — a city
  19. mate — a friend
  20. pop — music
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rash — a series
  24. wave — with your hand

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