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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. bank — for money
  3. spell — magic
  4. bank — for money
  5. object — a thing
  6. shower — to wash
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. rash — a series
  9. shower — rain
  10. object — to protest
  11. fork — in a road
  12. spell — letters
  13. object — an aim
  14. bank — of a river
  15. prune — to trim
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. present — the time now
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. prune — to trim
  23. present — there
  24. spell — a short time

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