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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. race — the arms race
  5. lean — to bend
  6. bass — low music
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. ground — a position
  9. race — a contest
  10. object — a thing
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. race — humankind
  13. branch — a division
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. lean — thin
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. ground — crushed
  20. object — to protest
  21. object — an aim
  22. mine — for digging
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. bass — the fish

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