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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bank — for money
  3. bank — of a river
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. spring — a coil
  6. mug — a cup
  7. spring — the season
  8. cold — an illness
  9. tear — to rip
  10. spring — of water
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cell — a phone
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. scale — size or range
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. plane — a tool
  20. bank — for money
  21. scale — in music
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mug — a face
  24. mug — to rob

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