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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'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bank — of a river
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. march — the month
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. kid — child
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. lean — to bend
  9. swing — in golf
  10. fall — to drop
  11. swing — to play on
  12. wake — a trail
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. kid — to tease
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. march — music
  19. lean — thin
  20. bank — for money
  21. march — the month
  22. swing — music
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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