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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hide · wind · bat · bowl · bank · key

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bank — for money
  4. key — the most important part
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bank — for money
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. key — in music
  14. bank — of a river
  15. key — for a lock
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. hide — animal skin

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