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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 120 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: wave · game · wound · tear · bank · chest · file · rash

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. rash — a series
  3. file — a line of people
  4. game — wild animals
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bank — of a river
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. tear — to rip
  11. rash — hasty
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a document
  14. game — a match
  15. wound — an injury
  16. chest — a box
  17. wound — an injury
  18. chest — of your body
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. bank — for money
  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