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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. deal — to handle
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. wound — an injury
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bat — the animal
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. prune — to trim
  17. branch — a division
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. chair — a leader
  24. wound — an injury

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