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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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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: safe · bank · bark · squash · cold · wax · tear · spring

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  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. wax — for sculpting
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — for money
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bank — of a river
  8. tear — from crying
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spring — of water
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. squash — to crush
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. spring — the season
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. squash — the sport
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. wax — to grow
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. bark — to shout
  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