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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: squash · mine · spring · wave · calf · bank · last · scale

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. last — final
  3. mine — for digging
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. last — to go on
  6. spring — of water
  7. last — finally
  8. spring — a coil
  9. squash — to crush
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. scale — in music
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bank — for money
  15. squash — the sport
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bank — of a river
  19. spring — the season
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. scale — size or range

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