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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. shower — rain
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. chest — of your body
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. key — for a lock
  9. chest — of your body
  10. shower — to wash
  11. sharp — clever
  12. tube — a container
  13. content — happy
  14. key — in music
  15. tube — the underground
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. key — the most important part
  20. chest — a box
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. content — the amount
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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