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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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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: tear · branch · pit · deal · mine · hide · bank · capital

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pit — in a race
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. tear — from crying
  6. capital — a city
  7. bank — for money
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bank — for money
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. mine — for digging
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. tear — to rip
  17. deal — to handle
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. capital — money
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. branch — a division
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. bank — of a river

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