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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bank — of a river
  3. net — after costs
  4. mug — a cup
  5. net — in sport
  6. cold — an illness
  7. net — for catching
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. mug — a face
  10. mug — to rob
  11. content — the amount
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bank — for money
  14. branch — a division
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. firm — decided
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. firm — a company
  19. cold — not warm
  20. firm — steady
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. content — happy
  24. branch — of a tree

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