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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 116 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 took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. bank — for money
  3. mug — a face
  4. tear — from crying
  5. mug — a cup
  6. bat — the animal
  7. tear — to rip
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. scale — size or range
  10. mug — to rob
  11. bank — of a river
  12. land — a country
  13. land — to come down
  14. tear — from crying
  15. track — to keep track
  16. scale — in music
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. land — ground
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bank — for money
  23. track — a song
  24. track — a path

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