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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 bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. file — a tool
  3. bank — for money
  4. mine — for digging
  5. fall — the season
  6. root — of a plant
  7. rock — music
  8. bank — for money
  9. root — the cause
  10. file — a line of people
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bank — of a river
  13. bass — the fish
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. bass — low music
  20. rock — a stone
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. file — a document
  23. root — of a word
  24. rock — to move gently

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