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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 120 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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bank — for money
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bank — of a river
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. fall — the season
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cold — not warm
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — a division
  17. tear — to rip
  18. fall — to drop
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. tube — a container
  21. saw — the tool
  22. tube — the underground
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. fall — to drop

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