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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: hand · pound · spring · ground · wave · bank · dip · track

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. dip — to sink
  4. spring — a coil
  5. track — a song
  6. bank — for money
  7. hand — help
  8. ground — a position
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. pound — a weight
  12. ground — the earth
  13. hand — in cards
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. track — to keep track
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. spring — the season
  18. bank — of a river
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. bank — for money
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. ground — crushed
  23. spring — of water
  24. wave — of the sea

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