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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 124 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. bank — for money
  4. net — after costs
  5. tube — the underground
  6. rush — hurry
  7. ball — a dance
  8. ball — a great time
  9. tube — a container
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. net — for catching
  12. squash — the sport
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bank — for money
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. squash — to crush
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. net — in sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. scale — in music
  24. bank — of a river

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