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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. fall — the season
  3. staff — a stick
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. last — final
  6. fall — to drop
  7. bank — for money
  8. key — in music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. clip — for paper
  11. last — finally
  12. last — to go on
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. staff — employees
  15. clip — to cut
  16. sharp — clever
  17. key — the most important part
  18. staff — employees
  19. fall — to drop
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. bank — for money
  22. clip — a video
  23. rush — hurry
  24. rush — a thrill

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