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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 124 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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. ground — a position
  4. court — of a king
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. scale — size or range
  7. foot — a measure
  8. court — for sport
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. lean — thin
  12. ground — crushed
  13. court — of law
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. lean — to bend
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. scale — in music
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. ground — the earth
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. scale — for weighing

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