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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: dip · bank · roll · spring · ruler · wind · bear · kid

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. bear — the animal
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bank — for money
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. roll — a list
  10. bear — the animal
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. wind — moving air
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. bank — for money
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. spring — of water
  18. dip — to sink
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. spring — the season
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. kid — child
  24. wind — moving air

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