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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. kid — to tease
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. tube — the underground
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — for money
  10. kid — child
  11. tube — a container
  12. wind — moving air
  13. drill — the tool
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. drill — a practice
  17. wake — a trail
  18. drill — army training
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. bank — of a river
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. fall — to drop

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