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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.

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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 · cold · face · jam · kick · staff · mark · bore

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. face — part of the head
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. march — music
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. mark — a grade
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. bore — to tire
  9. bore — to drill
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. face — to confront
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. cold — not warm
  14. march — the month
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. kick — in football
  17. staff — a stick
  18. face — to point toward
  19. mark — a trace
  20. staff — employees
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cold — an illness
  23. staff — employees
  24. march — the month

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