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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. branch — a division
  3. season — in sport
  4. mate — to breed
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. mate — a partner
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. rest — what's left
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bass — low music
  12. wind — moving air
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. mate — a friend
  16. mine — for digging
  17. deal — to handle
  18. rest — a break
  19. rest — what's left
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. season — of the year
  22. bass — the fish
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. bass — the instrument

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