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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — a tin
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. shower — rain
  5. bank — for money
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. bank — of a river
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. kid — to tease
  11. clip — for paper
  12. can — to be able to
  13. cell — in biology
  14. bank — for money
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — to wash
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — to cut
  19. wake — a trail
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. kid — child
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. jam — in traffic

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