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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. spring — the season
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — for money
  5. field — a subject
  6. dip — to sink
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stand — to bear
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. field — farmland
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. bank — of a river
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — a coil
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. field — for sport

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