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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. ball — a dance
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bank — for money
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bank — for money
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bat — the animal
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. mark — a grade
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. mark — a trace
  16. bear — the animal
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. ball — a great time
  21. wound — an injury
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bank — of a river

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