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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: board · swing · shower · current · court · file · branch · fall

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. shower — to wash
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. swing — to play on
  6. branch — a division
  7. board — a committee
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — rain
  10. fall — to drop
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. current — happening now
  13. swing — in golf
  14. current — of water
  15. current — electric
  16. court — for sport
  17. court — of law
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a document
  20. court — of a king
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. file — a line of people
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. board — to get on

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