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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: stand · band · bank · wound · tube · chest · ground · bat

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. bank — for money
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. bank — of a river
  5. bank — for money
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bat — the animal
  9. tube — a container
  10. wound — an injury
  11. tube — the underground
  12. wound — an injury
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. stand — to bear
  17. ground — a position
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. band — a music group
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. chest — of your body
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a ring

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