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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. file — a document
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. tube — the underground
  5. band — a ring
  6. club — for golf
  7. band — a music group
  8. file — a tool
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. branch — a division
  11. tube — a container
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pitch — completely
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. row — a line
  16. club — for dancing
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. content — happy
  19. row — to paddle
  20. club — a group
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. file — a line of people
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — videos and posts

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