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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. dip — to sink
  3. clip — to cut
  4. mug — to rob
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. clip — for paper
  8. pit — in a race
  9. branch — a division
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. mug — a cup
  13. capital — money
  14. pit — a hole
  15. mug — a face
  16. capital — a city
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — to trim
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. clip — a video
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. capital — a big letter

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