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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: cold · cap · stick · file · squash · scale · rock · bank

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. bank — of a river
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cap — a hat
  6. rock — music
  7. rock — a stone
  8. cold — an illness
  9. file — a tool
  10. squash — to crush
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bank — for money
  15. cap — a lid
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. squash — the sport
  18. scale — in music
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. file — a line of people
  21. bank — for money
  22. file — a document
  23. cold — not warm
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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