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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: bank · track · straw · march · stick · date · perch · spring

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. track — a path
  3. bank — for money
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. spring — of water
  6. track — a song
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. march — the month
  10. track — to keep track
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. march — music
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. perch — the fish
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. spring — a coil
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bank — of a river
  20. spring — the season
  21. date — the fruit
  22. march — the month
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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