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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. swing — music
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. mate — to breed
  8. swing — to play on
  9. mate — a friend
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. swing — in golf
  14. branch — a division
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. mate — a partner
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. mine — for digging
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. content — the amount
  22. saw — the tool
  23. chair — a leader
  24. branch — of a tree

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