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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'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. tube — the underground
  3. stem — to come from
  4. degree — an amount
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. bank — of a river
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. bank — for money
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wound — an injury
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. wound — an injury
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — to crush
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. squash — the sport
  18. degree — temperature
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. sharp — clever
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. tube — a container
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. lash — to lash out

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