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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. fall — the season
  3. fall — to drop
  4. chest — of your body
  5. land — ground
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. net — for catching
  8. branch — a division
  9. foot — a measure
  10. net — after costs
  11. club — a group
  12. net — in sport
  13. club — for dancing
  14. fall — to drop
  15. land — a country
  16. chest — of your body
  17. drill — the tool
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. drill — army training
  21. club — for golf
  22. drill — a practice
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. chest — a box

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