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

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bank — for money
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bank — for money
  6. bound — tied together
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. fall — to drop
  10. stock — shares
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bound — certain
  14. bank — of a river
  15. stock — goods
  16. cell — in biology
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cell — in a prison

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