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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — of water
  3. row — a line
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. fork — in a road
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. spring — a coil
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bank — for money
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. stand — to bear
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. bank — for money
  16. game — a match
  17. game — wild animals
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. row — to paddle
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bank — of a river
  23. bark — to shout
  24. straw — a straw man

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