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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: stick · game · bank · drill · kid · perch

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. game — wild animals
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. kid — child
  8. bank — of a river
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. drill — army training
  11. kid — to tease
  12. perch — the fish
  13. drill — a practice
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. game — a match
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bank — for money
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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