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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. roll — a cake
  3. wake — a trail
  4. spring — the season
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. spring — of water
  7. object — a thing
  8. net — in sport
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. row — a line
  12. spring — a coil
  13. net — after costs
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bank — for money
  17. bark — to shout
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. object — an aim
  20. bank — for money
  21. net — for catching
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. roll — a list
  24. object — to protest

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