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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pop — to visit
  4. row — to paddle
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. pop — soda
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. rash — a series
  10. ground — a position
  11. cell — in biology
  12. branch — a division
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. row — a line
  17. pop — music
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. cell — a phone
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. ground — the earth
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. ground — crushed

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