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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. bank — for money
  3. file — a tool
  4. game — wild animals
  5. swing — music
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bank — for money
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. file — a document
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. game — a match
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — magic
  20. spell — a short time
  21. swing — to play on
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bank — of a river

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