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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 116 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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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: cap · kick · suit · deal · march · cold · fan · rest

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. cold — an illness
  3. suit — to fit
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. march — the month
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. rest — a break
  9. cap — a hat
  10. march — the month
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. rest — what's left
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a lid
  15. kick — in football
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. march — music
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. rest — what's left
  20. deal — to handle
  21. cold — not warm
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. suit — clothes
  24. suit — in cards

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