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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. lie — to recline
  3. bat — the animal
  4. can — a tin
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bank — of a river
  7. can — to be able to
  8. bank — for money
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. bank — for money
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. can — a tin
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. squash — the sport
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wake — a trail
  23. pitch — completely
  24. lie — an untruth

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