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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bank — for money
  3. roll — a list
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bank — for money
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. cold — an illness
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wound — an injury
  10. key — the most important part
  11. bear — the animal
  12. can — to be able to
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bank — of a river
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. key — for a lock
  17. roll — a cake
  18. wind — moving air
  19. can — a tin
  20. key — in music
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. can — a tin
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bear — 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