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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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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: bulb · race · bank · rash · wound · cold · hide · land

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. land — a country
  6. cold — not warm
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. bulb — for light
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. rash — a series
  14. cold — an illness
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bulb — for light
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. bank — for money
  20. race — the arms race
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. land — ground
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bulb — of a plant

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