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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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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: hand · squash · rest · content · bank · dip · wind · spring

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. squash — to crush
  3. content — the amount
  4. dip — to sink
  5. squash — the sport
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rest — a break
  9. spring — a coil
  10. content — happy
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bank — for money
  13. wind — moving air
  14. hand — in cards
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. spring — the season
  17. bank — for money
  18. rest — what's left
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. bank — of a river
  21. spring — of water
  22. rest — what's left
  23. hand — help
  24. squash — the vegetable

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