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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. cold — an illness
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. cap — of ice
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. cold — not warm
  11. content — happy
  12. bank — for money
  13. cap — a hat
  14. bank — for money
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. content — the amount
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bass — the fish
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. bass — low music
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bass — the instrument

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