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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 116 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 · land · safe · plane · row · wind · rash · ground

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. land — a country
  3. ground — a position
  4. rash — a series
  5. rash — hasty
  6. bank — of a river
  7. ground — the earth
  8. row — a line
  9. bank — for money
  10. land — to come down
  11. wind — moving air
  12. land — ground
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. bank — for money
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. wind — moving air
  23. plane — a tool
  24. plane — an aircraft

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