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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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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. present — a gift
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. wound — an injury
  8. charge — in control
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. wound — an injury
  13. perch — the fish
  14. branch — a division
  15. charge — electricity
  16. charge — a price
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. present — the time now

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