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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: cold · straw · rush · branch · jam · wound · mouse · lie

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. cold — not warm
  9. wound — an injury
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. lie — to recline
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. cold — an illness
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. branch — a division
  22. rush — hurry
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. branch — of a tree

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