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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. file — a line of people
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. branch — a division
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. dip — to sink
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. board — to get on
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. cold — not warm
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. file — a document
  19. board — a committee
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cold — an illness
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. file — a tool
  24. dip — to dunk

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