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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: bank · safe · tube · wind · mine · fall · object · bass

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. bank — for money
  3. tube — a container
  4. object — an aim
  5. fall — to drop
  6. tube — the underground
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. bank — for money
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. bass — low music
  13. wind — moving air
  14. fall — to drop
  15. object — to protest
  16. mine — for digging
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bass — the fish
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wind — moving air
  22. fall — the season
  23. bank — of a river
  24. object — a thing

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