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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bank — for money
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. deal — to handle
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. bark — to shout
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. rash — a series
  18. stem — to come from
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — hasty
  21. bank — of a river
  22. bank — for money
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. pitch — completely

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