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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wound — an injury
  4. file — a line of people
  5. shower — rain
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. file — a document
  9. charge — a price
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. chip — for betting
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wax — to grow
  15. charge — electricity
  16. file — a tool
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. chip — to eat
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — a division
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. charge — in control

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