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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. race — humankind
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. branch — a division
  6. race — a contest
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — of a river
  10. current — happening now
  11. bass — low music
  12. current — of water
  13. cell — in biology
  14. current — electric
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bass — the fish
  17. cell — a phone
  18. scale — in music
  19. bank — for money
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. race — the arms race
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. scale — size or range

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