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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. net — after costs
  3. file — a tool
  4. branch — a division
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. file — a line of people
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. rock — a stone
  10. season — of the year
  11. pass — a permit
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. march — the month
  15. file — a document
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. season — in sport
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — in sport
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. nail — for a hammer

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