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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. pitch — completely
  7. fall — to drop
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. can — a tin
  11. file — a line of people
  12. shower — rain
  13. can — to be able to
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. file — a document
  16. season — in sport
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. file — a tool
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. fall — the season
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. branch — a division
  23. shower — to wash
  24. can — a tin

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