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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bank — for money
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. bank — of a river
  7. staff — employees
  8. tube — a container
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. staff — employees
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. spring — the season
  14. kid — to tease
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spring — of water
  20. bank — for money
  21. tube — the underground
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. staff — a stick
  24. tube — in a tire

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