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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. cold — not warm
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. field — a subject
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. branch — a division
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. bank — for money
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. bank — of a river
  13. chip — to eat
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a tool
  16. board — to get on
  17. field — for sport
  18. board — a committee
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. bank — for money
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chip — for betting
  23. file — a line of people
  24. field — farmland

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