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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. cold — an illness
  4. plane — a tool
  5. roll — a cake
  6. cold — not warm
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. clip — to cut
  9. mug — a cup
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. roll — a list
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. bank — for money
  15. bank — for money
  16. clip — a video
  17. mug — a face
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. clip — for paper
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. mug — to rob
  24. wave — of the sea

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