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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. saw — the tool
  3. file — a tool
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. tube — the underground
  8. file — a document
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. branch — a division
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. hand — help
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. saw — the tool
  22. pitch — completely
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. file — a line of people

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