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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. bank — for money
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. rock — a stone
  5. ground — crushed
  6. last — to go on
  7. rush — hurry
  8. last — final
  9. cold — an illness
  10. ground — a position
  11. ground — the earth
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bank — for money
  15. bank — of a river
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. rock — music
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. last — finally
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. deal — to handle

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