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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: pitcher · file · land · current · row · bound · shower · branch

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. shower — to wash
  4. file — a document
  5. row — to paddle
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. land — to come down
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. file — a tool
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. current — happening now
  13. land — a country
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. bound — certain
  16. branch — a division
  17. current — electric
  18. land — ground
  19. shower — rain
  20. bound — tied together
  21. row — a line
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bound — obliged
  24. file — a line of people

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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