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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. bank — of a river
  3. content — happy
  4. wound — an injury
  5. object — a thing
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bank — for money
  8. wound — an injury
  9. race — a contest
  10. content — the amount
  11. bank — for money
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. object — to protest
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wind — moving air
  16. drill — the tool
  17. tube — a container
  18. wind — moving air
  19. race — humankind
  20. drill — a practice
  21. object — an aim
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. race — the arms race
  24. content — videos and posts

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