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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. bank — for money
  3. drill — a practice
  4. ball — a great time
  5. branch — a division
  6. rule — a law
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — not warm
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. bank — for money
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. bank — of a river
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. drill — army training
  18. drill — the tool
  19. pitch — completely
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. rule — government
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. ball — a dance
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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