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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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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: can · racket · bat · bore · fork · file · bank · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. can — a tin
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bore — to tire
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. bank — of a river
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cold — an illness
  10. bank — for money
  11. file — a line of people
  12. can — to be able to
  13. fork — in a road
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. file — a document
  20. file — a tool
  21. bat — the animal
  22. can — a tin
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bank — for money

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