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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 · season · bat · tube · stand · rush · dip · clip

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. stand — to bear
  4. tube — a container
  5. rush — hurry
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. season — of the year
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bank — of a river
  12. bank — for money
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — to cut
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. bank — for money
  18. tube — the underground
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. dip — to sink
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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