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

Word bank: ground · file · leaves · club · ruler · toast · kid · branch

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for golf
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. file — a line of people
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. ground — crushed
  9. toast — bread
  10. ground — the earth
  11. kid — to tease
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. branch — a division
  17. kid — child
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. club — for dancing
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. file — a tool
  22. ground — a position
  23. file — a document
  24. leaves — to go away

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