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

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. branch — a division
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. last — to go on
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. spring — the season
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. kick — in football
  17. last — finally
  18. bore — to drill

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