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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. kick — in football
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. pound — a weight
  7. tear — to rip
  8. rock — a stone
  9. foot — a measure
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. rock — music
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. craft — boats
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — an illness
  22. craft — a skill
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. cold — not warm

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