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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 116 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. deal — to handle
  4. clip — for paper
  5. face — to point toward
  6. face — to confront
  7. tube — a container
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. march — the month
  10. firm — steady
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. branch — a division
  14. face — part of the head
  15. tube — the underground
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. firm — a company
  19. clip — to cut
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. clip — a video
  22. firm — decided
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. deal — an agreement

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