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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: file · degree · swing · wind · bank · arm

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. file — a tool
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. swing — to play on
  5. degree — from a university
  6. bank — of a river
  7. degree — temperature
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. degree — an amount
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bank — for money
  12. wind — moving air
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. bank — for money
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — music
  18. wind — to turn a key

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