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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. cap — a lid
  3. can — a tin
  4. ball — a dance
  5. bank — for money
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cold — not warm
  8. pop — to visit
  9. face — to point toward
  10. can — to be able to
  11. cap — of ice
  12. cap — a hat
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. bank — of a river
  15. cold — an illness
  16. pop — soda
  17. land — a country
  18. face — part of the head
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. face — to confront
  23. can — a tin
  24. pop — music

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