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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. club — for golf
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. last — finally
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. wound — an injury
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. last — final
  14. pop — music
  15. object — to protest
  16. pop — soda
  17. object — an aim
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. club — a group
  21. club — for dancing
  22. object — a thing
  23. branch — a division
  24. pop — to visit

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