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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 were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. spring — of water
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. roll — a cake
  6. track — a path
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. track — a song
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. rock — music
  12. bank — for money
  13. spring — the season
  14. roll — a list
  15. wind — moving air
  16. spring — a coil
  17. toast — bread
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. track — to keep track
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pitcher — a jug

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