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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. rash — hasty
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. rash — a series
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. present — a gift
  7. present — the time now
  8. row — to paddle
  9. branch — a division
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. tear — from crying
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. tear — to rip
  16. march — the month
  17. present — there
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. march — music
  20. squash — to crush
  21. tear — from crying
  22. march — the month
  23. squash — the sport
  24. perch — the fish

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