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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: branch · rock · straw · bank · game · rash · clip · roll

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. clip — for paper
  3. rash — hasty
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. rash — a series
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. roll — a list
  9. branch — a division
  10. game — wild animals
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. roll — a cake
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — to cut
  16. bank — for money
  17. rock — music
  18. rock — a stone
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. bank — of a river
  22. game — a match
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. rash — on the skin

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