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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. squash — to crush
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. charge — electricity
  7. field — a subject
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. bass — low music
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. bank — for money
  12. charge — a price
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. field — for sport
  19. bank — of a river
  20. charge — in control
  21. field — farmland
  22. bass — the fish
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — for tennis

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