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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: can · saw · bat · clip · bore · root · last · bank

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. bank — for money
  3. last — final
  4. last — to go on
  5. root — of a word
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. clip — a video
  8. can — to be able to
  9. can — a tin
  10. root — the cause
  11. bore — to drill
  12. saw — the tool
  13. bore — to tire
  14. clip — for paper
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bank — of a river
  19. root — of a plant
  20. saw — the tool
  21. clip — to cut
  22. last — finally
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bank — for money

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