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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. cell — in biology
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cell — a phone
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bank — of a river
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. spell — magic
  11. cap — a lid
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. mine — for digging
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. spell — letters
  18. cap — a hat
  19. bank — for money
  20. dip — to sink
  21. cap — of ice
  22. bank — for money
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. fan — a supporter

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