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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 · field · toast · cabinet · root · file · bank · chair

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bank — for money
  4. root — of a word
  5. toast — bread
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. chair — a leader
  8. file — a document
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. file — a tool
  11. root — the cause
  12. root — of a plant
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. field — for sport
  16. bank — for money
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bank — of a river
  21. cold — an illness
  22. field — a subject
  23. file — a line of people
  24. field — farmland

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