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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. snap — to click
  3. roll — a cake
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. bank — of a river
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cap — a lid
  12. wound — an injury
  13. roll — a list
  14. bank — for money
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. file — a tool
  18. bank — for money
  19. cap — a hat
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cap — of ice
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. wound — an injury

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