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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. bank — for money
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cold — not warm
  6. key — for a lock
  7. perch — the fish
  8. firm — a company
  9. firm — decided
  10. bank — of a river
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. chest — a box
  14. key — in music
  15. firm — steady
  16. key — the most important part
  17. cold — an illness
  18. chest — of your body

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