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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. file — a tool
  4. bank — for money
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. saw — the tool
  8. file — a document
  9. face — part of the head
  10. rush — hurry
  11. saw — the tool
  12. face — to confront
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. file — a line of people
  15. face — to point toward
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. field — a subject
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. field — for sport
  20. bank — for money
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. field — farmland
  24. trunk — of a car

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