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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 116 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: bank · wake · wound · firm · pass · bulb · cold · bat

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bulb — for light
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. firm — a company
  6. bat — the animal
  7. pass — a permit
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — decided
  10. cold — not warm
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bank — for money
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. cold — an illness
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bank — of a river

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