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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. shower — to wash
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. deal — to handle
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. file — a document
  13. chest — of your body
  14. file — a tool
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. chest — a box
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. file — a line of people
  19. sharp — clever
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. branch — a division
  22. chest — of your body
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. shower — rain

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