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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. bank — for money
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. kid — to tease
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — of water
  7. bank — for money
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. can — a tin
  11. court — of a king
  12. court — of law
  13. bank — of a river
  14. court — for sport
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. saw — the tool
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. saw — the tool
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. spring — the season
  24. pitcher — a jug

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