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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a tool
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — for money
  6. swing — music
  7. court — of a king
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. craft — boats
  10. shower — rain
  11. file — a document
  12. swing — in golf
  13. court — of law
  14. bank — of a river
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. clip — to cut
  18. clip — a video
  19. court — for sport
  20. craft — a skill
  21. board — to get on
  22. swing — to play on
  23. clip — for paper
  24. board — a committee

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