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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bank — for money
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. file — a line of people
  7. root — the cause
  8. fork — in a road
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. file — a document
  11. bank — of a river
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. file — a tool
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. key — the most important part
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. key — for a lock
  19. root — of a word
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. key — in music
  23. game — a match
  24. root — of a plant

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