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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. chest — of your body
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. chest — of your body
  9. perch — the fish
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. toast — bread
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. spell — magic
  15. spell — letters
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — to wash
  20. spell — a short time
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. snap — to click
  24. chest — a box

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