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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. lean — thin
  6. stem — to come from
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the sport
  9. lean — to bend
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — a publisher
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. press — to push
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. mine — for digging
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. branch — of a tree

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