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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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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: wake · bound · straw · pit · fall · dip · lean · bank

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. bank — for money
  3. bank — for money
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. pit — a hole
  9. fall — to drop
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. bound — certain
  12. fall — to drop
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bank — of a river
  18. pit — in a race
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. lean — thin
  21. fall — the season
  22. lean — to bend
  23. dip — to sink
  24. wake — a trail

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