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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: branch · straw · mate · dip · trunk · stand · file · hand

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. mate — a friend
  4. file — a tool
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. file — a document
  8. stand — to bear
  9. mate — a partner
  10. file — a line of people
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. mate — to breed
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. hand — help
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. branch — a division
  18. hand — in cards
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. dip — to sink

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