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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 120 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: rest · tube · bank · fall · deal · file · cold · lean

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. bank — of a river
  3. fall — the season
  4. file — a tool
  5. bank — for money
  6. tube — a container
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bank — for money
  9. file — a line of people
  10. fall — to drop
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. rest — a break
  13. tube — the underground
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. file — a document
  16. lean — to bend
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. cold — an illness
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. deal — to handle
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. rest — what's left
  23. fall — to drop
  24. cold — not warm

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