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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 120 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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. rest — what's left
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. bank — for money
  7. file — a tool
  8. bound — obliged
  9. rest — a break
  10. band — a music group
  11. object — to protest
  12. branch — a division
  13. file — a document
  14. object — an aim
  15. bank — of a river
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. band — a ring
  18. file — a line of people
  19. bank — for money
  20. rest — what's left
  21. mine — for digging
  22. bound — tied together
  23. bound — certain
  24. branch — of a tree

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