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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. bank — for money
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bulb — for light
  11. tube — the underground
  12. bank — for money
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. bulb — for light
  15. land — ground
  16. cold — not warm
  17. fork — in a road
  18. land — to come down
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. bank — of a river
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. cold — an illness
  24. land — a country

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