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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. land — a country
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. tube — the underground
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. branch — a division
  9. tube — a container
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. land — to come down
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. content — happy
  18. land — ground
  19. kick — in football
  20. content — the amount
  21. fine — high quality
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. mine — for digging

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