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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 chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. last — final
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. clip — for paper
  7. staff — employees
  8. branch — a division
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. last — to go on
  13. clip — a video
  14. sharp — clever
  15. staff — a stick
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. staff — employees
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. last — finally
  21. clip — to cut
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. deal — to handle
  24. sharp — exactly

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