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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 120 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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. bank — for money
  4. pop — music
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. stock — shares
  7. kid — child
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. track — to keep track
  10. stock — goods
  11. pop — soda
  12. bank — for money
  13. spell — a short time
  14. wind — moving air
  15. spell — letters
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. spell — magic
  18. squash — the sport
  19. pop — to visit
  20. wind — moving air
  21. kid — to tease
  22. squash — to crush
  23. track — a path
  24. track — a song

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