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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 120 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: fall · march · pit · file · branch · straw · rush · stick

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. fall — the season
  5. pit — a hole
  6. fall — to drop
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. branch — a division
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. rush — hurry
  14. file — a document
  15. fall — to drop
  16. file — a line of people
  17. march — the month
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. pit — in a race
  20. march — music
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. file — a tool
  24. branch — of a bank

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