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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 don't need to ________________ round.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — soda
  3. bank — for money
  4. net — for catching
  5. bank — for money
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. pop — music
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fall — the season
  11. ball — a dance
  12. ball — a great time
  13. net — in sport
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. net — after costs
  17. bank — of a river
  18. fall — to drop
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. rash — a series
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. rash — hasty
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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