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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: bay · wound · wind · bank · last · mouse · chest · board

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. last — finally
  3. bank — of a river
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. bank — for money
  10. wind — moving air
  11. board — to get on
  12. last — final
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. chest — of your body
  16. last — to go on
  17. chest — of your body
  18. board — a committee
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bank — for money
  24. chest — a box

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