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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bank — for money
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bank — for money
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. toast — bread
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. mug — a cup
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. wind — moving air
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. bank — of a river
  15. mug — to rob
  16. degree — from a university
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. wind — moving air
  21. mug — a face
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — an amount
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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