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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. branch — a division
  3. drill — army training
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. snap — to click
  10. drill — the tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. scale — size or range
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. file — a document
  15. stem — to come from
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. kid — child
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. kid — to tease
  22. scale — in music
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. drill — a practice

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