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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. staff — employees
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. rash — hasty
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. vault — a safe
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. rash — a series
  11. staff — employees
  12. stem — to come from
  13. branch — a division
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. staff — a stick
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. cell — a phone
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — to wash
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — the animal

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