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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. fall — the season
  8. file — a line of people
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. file — a document
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bank — for money
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. wake — a trail
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. file — a tool
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bank — of a river
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. mouse — the animal

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