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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. bank — for money
  3. track — a song
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. wind — moving air
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — of a river
  10. track — to keep track
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. wind — moving air
  14. track — a path
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. hand — help
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — not warm
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. chair — a leader
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — the fish
  24. wind — to turn a key

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