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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: bank · cabinet · fan · branch · bat · file · wound · bear

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  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. bear — the animal
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. file — a tool
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bat — the animal
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — a division
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. file — a document
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — for money
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bank — of a river
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. wound — an injury
  23. branch — of a tree
  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