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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bank — for money
  3. spring — a coil
  4. branch — a division
  5. rock — music
  6. board — to get on
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. wake — a trail
  9. bank — of a river
  10. net — after costs
  11. rock — a stone
  12. net — in sport
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. net — for catching
  15. board — a committee
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — the season
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — to wash
  22. bank — for money
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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