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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. cold — an illness
  3. dip — to sink
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. mug — to rob
  7. court — of law
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. mug — a face
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. cold — not warm
  12. mug — a cup
  13. band — a ring
  14. season — in sport
  15. court — of a king
  16. branch — a division
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. court — for sport
  21. bear — the animal
  22. season — of the year
  23. band — a music group
  24. season — to add flavour

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