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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bank — for money
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. mug — a cup
  6. mug — a face
  7. mug — to rob
  8. club — for golf
  9. bank — of a river
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. branch — a division
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bank — for money
  16. bat — the animal
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. dip — to sink
  19. season — in sport
  20. club — a group
  21. club — for dancing
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. season — of the year
  24. dip — a sauce

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