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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. tear — from crying
  3. fine — all right
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. clip — to cut
  10. scale — size or range
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. mine — for digging
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. clip — for paper
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. tear — from crying
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. clip — a video
  21. tear — to rip
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. fine — high quality

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