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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: bat · tear · bank · board · lean · firm · fan · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bank — for money
  4. lean — thin
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — the animal
  8. firm — steady
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. firm — a company
  11. tear — to rip
  12. lean — to bend
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. firm — decided
  15. tear — from crying
  16. board — to get on
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. tear — from crying
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. board — a committee

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