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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. charge — electricity
  3. lean — to bend
  4. rock — music
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. craft — a skill
  7. branch — a division
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. shower — rain
  10. charge — a price
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. shower — to wash
  15. lean — thin
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — a stone
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bat — the animal
  23. charge — in control
  24. craft — boats

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