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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. fork — in a road
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. wind — moving air
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. wind — moving air
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. rush — hurry
  13. shower — to wash
  14. branch — a division
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. shower — rain
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. fall — the season
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitch — completely

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