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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: fall · bat · deal · bank · cap · chair · branch · hand

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. hand — help
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. cap — a lid
  8. bank — for money
  9. fall — to drop
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. bat — the animal
  12. branch — a division
  13. fall — to drop
  14. chair — a leader
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bank — of a river
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. cap — of ice
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bank — for money
  21. cap — a hat
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. deal — to handle

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