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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 120 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. last — final
  4. degree — an amount
  5. saw — the tool
  6. last — to go on
  7. bank — of a river
  8. chip — to eat
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. bank — for money
  12. last — finally
  13. bank — for money
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. degree — temperature
  16. chip — for betting
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. degree — from a university
  19. wound — an injury
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mine — for digging
  24. stand — to bear

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