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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: stick · cold · net · kid · present · season · bank · fan

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. cold — not warm
  3. net — for catching
  4. cold — an illness
  5. present — a gift
  6. net — in sport
  7. kid — child
  8. bank — for money
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. bank — for money
  11. present — there
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. kid — to tease
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. season — of the year
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bank — of a river
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. net — after costs
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. season — in sport

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