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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: row · deal · mine · shower · charge · lean · straw · bank

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. deal — to handle
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — for money
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. bank — of a river
  7. charge — electricity
  8. shower — rain
  9. row — to paddle
  10. charge — in control
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. lean — to bend
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. lean — thin
  18. charge — a price
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. row — a line
  22. mine — for digging
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. mine — an explosive

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