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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. branch — a division
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. band — a ring
  9. file — a line of people
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. snap — to click
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. perch — the fish
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. file — a document
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. file — a tool
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. perch — for a bird

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