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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 116 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: row · file · rash · swing · bank · dip · band · perch

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. band — a ring
  5. swing — in golf
  6. perch — the fish
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a line
  10. band — a music group
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — for money
  13. rash — a series
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. swing — music
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. file — a tool
  18. dip — to sink
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bank — of a river
  21. file — a document
  22. swing — to play on
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. rash — on the skin

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