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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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Word bank
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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: row · net · pop · bank · rock · squash · fan · cold

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. cold — an illness
  4. rock — music
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. pop — music
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. rock — a stone
  11. net — for catching
  12. bank — for money
  13. net — in sport
  14. row — a line
  15. squash — the sport
  16. squash — to crush
  17. pop — soda
  18. bank — of a river
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bank — for money
  21. net — after costs
  22. cold — not warm
  23. pop — to visit
  24. rock — to move gently

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