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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: wake · deal · leaves · rash · wind · bank · cold · pop

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pop — to visit
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. pop — music
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bank — for money
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. bank — for money
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wake — a trail
  14. cold — an illness
  15. pop — soda
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — a series
  19. bank — of a river
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. cold — not warm
  22. wind — moving air
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — an agreement

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