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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — in biology
  4. wound — an injury
  5. track — a path
  6. mate — a partner
  7. branch — a division
  8. court — of a king
  9. tube — a container
  10. track — a song
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. mate — to breed
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. tube — the underground
  17. mate — a friend
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. cell — a phone
  21. court — for sport
  22. rush — hurry
  23. track — to keep track
  24. court — of law

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