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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 broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bank — for money
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. ball — a great time
  7. firm — steady
  8. ball — a dance
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. swing — music
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. swing — to play on
  13. firm — decided
  14. pound — a weight
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. mine — for digging
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cold — not warm
  19. swing — in golf
  20. firm — a company
  21. bank — of a river
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. bank — for money

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