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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: leaves · mug · land · stock · bank · hand · wind · prune

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. stock — shares
  5. land — to come down
  6. mug — a face
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. hand — help
  9. mug — a cup
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. mug — to rob
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. bank — for money
  15. land — a country
  16. wind — moving air
  17. hand — in cards
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. stock — goods
  21. land — ground
  22. bank — of a river
  23. bank — for money
  24. hand — part of the body

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