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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. key — the most important part
  6. saw — the tool
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — a coil
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. key — for a lock
  11. wound — an injury
  12. spring — the season
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wound — an injury
  19. branch — a division
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. saw — the tool
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. prune — to trim
  24. key — in music

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