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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bank · mug · tube · file · drill · ground · fork · swing

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. mug — to rob
  4. bank — for money
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — army training
  7. swing — in golf
  8. tube — the underground
  9. swing — music
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. ground — a position
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tube — a container
  14. mug — a face
  15. mug — a cup
  16. fork — in a road
  17. ground — crushed
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bank — of a river
  20. swing — to play on
  21. ground — the earth
  22. file — a document
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a line of people

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