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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · spring · bank · safe · cold · trunk · band · rule

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. spring — of water
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. spring — a coil
  5. band — a ring
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bank — for money
  8. hand — in cards
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. rule — government
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. spring — the season
  15. hand — help
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. rule — a law
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a music group
  20. bank — for money
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. cold — not warm
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. safe — a strongbox

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