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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 116 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: branch · pop · fan · file · plane · cold · saw · firm

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. file — a line of people
  4. plane — a tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. firm — decided
  10. branch — a division
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. pop — music
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. cold — an illness
  17. saw — the tool
  18. firm — steady
  19. cold — not warm
  20. file — a document
  21. file — a tool
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. pop — soda
  24. firm — a company

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