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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 116 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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. bank — for money
  3. scale — in music
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bank — for money
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. present — a gift
  8. tear — from crying
  9. lean — thin
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. present — the time now
  12. tear — to rip
  13. staff — a stick
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. present — there
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — employees
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. row — to paddle
  21. bank — of a river
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. lean — to bend
  24. row — a line

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