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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. last — finally
  3. last — to go on
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. pound — a weight
  6. last — final
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. lean — to bend
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. branch — a division
  11. track — a song
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. shower — rain
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. track — a path
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. date — the fruit
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. shower — to wash
  23. track — to keep track
  24. deal — to handle

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