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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. tube — a container
  3. bank — of a river
  4. rash — a series
  5. band — a ring
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — a subject
  11. kid — child
  12. rash — hasty
  13. snap — to click
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. kid — to tease
  17. tube — the underground
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. bank — for money
  20. sharp — clever
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. field — for sport
  23. band — a music group
  24. sharp — exactly

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