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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 116 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. cue — for pool
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. cue — a signal
  9. wax — to grow
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. bank — for money
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. stock — goods
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. fall — the season
  17. wake — a trail
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. cold — an illness
  20. fall — to drop
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. cue — a hint
  24. bank — for money

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