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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. present — the time now
  4. kid — to tease
  5. shower — to wash
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. present — there
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. race — a contest
  11. kid — child
  12. race — humankind
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. rash — a series
  16. race — the arms race
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. shower — rain
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. rash — hasty
  24. branch — a division

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