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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: band · shower · hand · cell · wake · jam · fan · branch

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. shower — to wash
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. hand — in cards
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — help
  9. cell — a phone
  10. wake — a trail
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. band — a ring
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. band — a music group
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. branch — a division
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. shower — rain

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