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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 120 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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. branch — a division
  3. ball — a great time
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wound — an injury
  8. stock — shares
  9. spring — the season
  10. kid — to tease
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. spring — a coil
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. wound — an injury
  18. suit — in cards
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. ball — a dance
  21. suit — to fit
  22. kid — child
  23. suit — clothes
  24. stock — goods

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