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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. branch — a division
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. drill — the tool
  7. file — a tool
  8. plane — a tool
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. capital — money
  13. file — a document
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. capital — a city
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. drill — a practice
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. drill — army training

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