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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. bank — for money
  4. scale — size or range
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a music group
  8. squash — to crush
  9. scale — in music
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. squash — the sport
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — of a river
  17. fine — high quality
  18. wake — a trail
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bat — the animal
  23. fine — all right
  24. squash — the vegetable

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