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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. cue — a hint
  3. pop — music
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. spring — of water
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. pop — to visit
  8. cue — a signal
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — for money
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wind — moving air
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pop — soda
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bank — of a river
  20. file — a tool
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cue — for pool
  23. file — a document
  24. spring — the season

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