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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 116 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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — a line
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. row — to paddle
  7. suit — to fit
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spell — a short time
  10. branch — a division
  11. clip — a video
  12. fine — all right
  13. suit — in cards
  14. suit — clothes
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. spell — letters
  17. spell — magic
  18. staff — a stick
  19. clip — to cut
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. staff — employees
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. fine — high quality
  24. clip — for paper

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