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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fall — to drop
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. fall — to drop
  6. bank — for money
  7. track — to keep track
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bank — of a river
  11. band — a music group
  12. fall — the season
  13. bank — for money
  14. wind — moving air
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. track — a path
  22. track — a song
  23. sharp — clever
  24. band — a ring

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