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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: tear · fall · spring · squash · sharp · bear · bank · coach

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. fall — the season
  5. squash — to crush
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bear — the animal
  8. fall — to drop
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bank — for money
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. sharp — clever
  14. fall — to drop
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — of water
  18. tear — from crying
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. squash — the sport
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. bear — the animal
  24. tear — to rip

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