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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: fall · bank · jam · tube · perch · clip · present · race

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. perch — the fish
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. present — a gift
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. bank — for money
  7. race — humankind
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. tube — the underground
  10. race — a contest
  11. present — the time now
  12. clip — a video
  13. fall — to drop
  14. clip — for paper
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. clip — to cut
  17. tube — a container
  18. bank — for money
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. fall — to drop
  22. race — the arms race
  23. present — there
  24. bank — of a river

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