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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: current · mouse · squash · cold · scale · bank · bark · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. scale — size or range
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. bank — of a river
  5. squash — the sport
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. bark — to shout
  10. current — electric
  11. bank — for money
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. squash — to crush
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. current — happening now
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. current — of water
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. scale — in music
  20. bank — for money
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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