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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 116 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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — of a river
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. lean — thin
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. capital — money
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a document
  14. bark — to shout
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. lean — to bend
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. capital — a city
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bank — for money

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