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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. cold — not warm
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rush — hurry
  5. tube — a container
  6. rash — hasty
  7. mate — to breed
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. bank — for money
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. mine — for digging
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rash — a series
  15. tube — the underground
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mate — a friend
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bank — of a river
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. bank — for money
  22. mate — a partner
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. cold — an illness

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