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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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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rash — hasty
  6. pop — soda
  7. pop — to visit
  8. squash — to crush
  9. staff — employees
  10. pop — music
  11. current — of water
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. current — happening now
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. current — electric
  17. squash — the sport
  18. staff — a stick
  19. wound — an injury
  20. staff — employees
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. rash — a series
  23. branch — a division
  24. ruler — for measuring

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