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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 116 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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. stand — to bear
  3. bank — for money
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. last — to go on
  6. march — music
  7. last — finally
  8. rock — music
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. mine — for digging
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. march — the month
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. rock — a stone
  16. bat — the animal
  17. march — the month
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. last — final
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. branch — a division
  23. bank — for money
  24. bank — of a river

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