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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: board · cold · bank · game · can · branch · squash · charge

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. board — a committee
  4. game — a match
  5. branch — a division
  6. bank — for money
  7. bank — of a river
  8. can — a tin
  9. squash — the sport
  10. can — to be able to
  11. charge — electricity
  12. cold — an illness
  13. game — wild animals
  14. charge — in control
  15. cold — not warm
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. board — to get on
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bank — for money
  24. charge — a price

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