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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. root — of a word
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. root — the cause
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. fine — high quality
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. cold — not warm
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a document
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. cold — an illness
  18. fine — all right
  19. branch — a division
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. club — for golf
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. root — of a plant
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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