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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. bound — certain
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. ground — the earth
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bound — obliged
  8. row — to paddle
  9. band — a music group
  10. branch — a division
  11. mate — to breed
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bound — tied together
  14. ground — a position
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. chip — to eat
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. ground — crushed
  22. row — a line
  23. wind — moving air
  24. mate — a partner

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