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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. branch — a division
  3. chest — a box
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. field — for sport
  9. chest — of your body
  10. last — to go on
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. wound — an injury
  14. field — farmland
  15. plane — a tool
  16. last — final
  17. field — a subject
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. wound — an injury
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. chest — of your body
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. safe — out of danger

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