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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. branch — a division
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. staff — employees
  9. land — to come down
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. shower — to wash
  12. staff — employees
  13. land — a country
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. land — ground
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. shower — rain
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. staff — a stick

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