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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. net — in sport
  3. key — for a lock
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wound — an injury
  10. net — for catching
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. key — the most important part
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. net — after costs
  15. wound — an injury
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. key — in music
  18. branch — a division

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