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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. fine — all right
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. foot — a measure
  6. cold — not warm
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. wax — to grow
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. pass — a permit
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. fine — high quality
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — for money
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. vault — a safe
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. cold — an illness
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. foot — the bottom

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