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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. spell — letters
  3. swing — music
  4. shower — to wash
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. spell — magic
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — the fruit
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bank — of a river
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. fork — in a road
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. plane — a tool
  19. swing — to play on
  20. bank — for money
  21. spell — a short time
  22. swing — in golf
  23. shower — rain
  24. date — on the calendar

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