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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 116 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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bank — for money
  5. deal — to handle
  6. court — of law
  7. cell — a phone
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — a company
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cold — an illness
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — for sport
  14. prune — to trim
  15. firm — decided
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. bank — for money
  19. key — the most important part
  20. key — in music
  21. cell — in biology
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bank — of a river
  24. key — for a lock

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