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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 116 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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wind — moving air
  5. spring — the season
  6. wind — moving air
  7. file — a line of people
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. capital — a city
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. spring — a coil
  12. capital — money
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — rain
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. file — a tool
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. season — of the year
  19. shower — to wash
  20. spring — of water
  21. season — in sport
  22. deal — to handle
  23. branch — a division
  24. capital — a big letter

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