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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 120 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: cold · craft · swing · bank · object · band

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. object — an aim
  3. band — a ring
  4. swing — in golf
  5. object — to protest
  6. band — a music group
  7. craft — boats
  8. craft — a skill
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bank — for money
  11. swing — music
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bank — for money
  15. swing — to play on
  16. object — a thing
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm

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