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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 120 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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. chest — of your body
  3. track — to keep track
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — for money
  6. bore — to tire
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. track — a song
  12. band — a music group
  13. chest — a box
  14. band — a ring
  15. chest — of your body
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bank — of a river
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bore — to drill
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. trunk — of a car

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