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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. mine — for digging
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — in cards
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. trunk — of a tree

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