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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'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  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. bank — for money
  2. wound — an injury
  3. degree — an amount
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. stand — to bear
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. degree — from a university
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. degree — temperature
  13. root — of a plant
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a word
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. bank — for money
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — an injury
  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