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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bound — tied together
  4. bank — for money
  5. spell — magic
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bound — certain
  8. content — the amount
  9. cap — a lid
  10. bound — obliged
  11. cap — of ice
  12. spell — letters
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bank — for money
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bank — of a river
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. cap — a hat
  21. race — humankind
  22. wound — an injury
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. content — happy

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