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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bank — of a river
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. hand — in cards
  8. current — electric
  9. wax — to grow
  10. prune — to trim
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. capital — money
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. bank — for money
  15. capital — a city
  16. current — of water
  17. track — to keep track
  18. dip — to sink
  19. track — a path
  20. current — happening now
  21. hand — help
  22. track — a song
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. dip — a sauce

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