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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 124 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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. spring — a coil
  4. dip — to sink
  5. bank — for money
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. spring — of water
  8. bank — for money
  9. spring — the season
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. kid — child
  12. fine — all right
  13. wind — moving air
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. fine — high quality
  16. bank — of a river
  17. cold — not warm
  18. kid — to tease
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. cold — an illness
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. wind — moving air

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