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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: lie · cap · ball · row · rash · bank · fork · file

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bank — of a river
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — to recline
  6. row — a line
  7. cap — a lid
  8. bank — for money
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. ball — a dance
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. cap — of ice
  13. rash — hasty
  14. cap — a hat
  15. fork — in a road
  16. file — a document
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a line of people
  19. rash — a series
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. ball — a great time
  23. bank — for money
  24. row — to paddle

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