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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. land — ground
  4. land — a country
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wound — an injury
  7. net — after costs
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — in music
  10. land — to come down
  11. net — for catching
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. bank — of a river
  14. net — in sport
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. dip — to sink
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. scale — size or range
  20. vault — a safe
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — for money
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wound — an injury

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