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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 was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. mug — to rob
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bank — of a river
  5. bound — certain
  6. bank — for money
  7. file — a tool
  8. kid — child
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — a face
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. file — a document
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. kid — to tease
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bound — tied together
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. file — a line of people
  20. cell — in biology
  21. bank — for money
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. trunk — of a tree

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