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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: kid · fan · board · spell · present · leaves · cold · march

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. board — to get on
  5. march — the month
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. present — there
  11. cold — an illness
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. spell — letters
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. present — a gift
  16. kid — child
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — magic
  20. board — a committee
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. kid — to tease
  24. board — a flat piece

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