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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bound — certain
  3. content — the amount
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. bank — of a river
  7. cap — a hat
  8. cap — of ice
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. race — a contest
  11. bank — for money
  12. bound — tied together
  13. content — happy
  14. race — humankind
  15. bass — low music
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cap — a lid
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mine — for digging
  23. race — the arms race
  24. content — videos and posts

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