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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. mark — a trace
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. chest — a box
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. file — a tool
  9. can — to be able to
  10. land — ground
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. file — a line of people
  13. land — a country
  14. file — a document
  15. chest — of your body
  16. mark — a grade
  17. branch — a division
  18. land — to come down
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. can — a tin
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. can — a tin
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. chair — a leader

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