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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. tear — from crying
  6. face — to confront
  7. present — a gift
  8. tear — from crying
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. tear — to rip
  12. scale — size or range
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bank — for money
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. face — to point toward
  18. bank — of a river
  19. face — part of the head
  20. present — there
  21. scale — in music
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. present — the time now
  24. mouse — the animal

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