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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. bank — for money
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fine — all right
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. band — a ring
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bank — of a river
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bank — for money
  11. snap — to click
  12. fine — high quality
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. fall — the season
  15. band — a music group
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. branch — a division
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. hand — help
  23. bat — the animal
  24. fine — a penalty

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