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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 120 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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. chair — a leader
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. branch — a division
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. wound — an injury
  10. field — farmland
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. prune — to trim
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. field — for sport
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wound — an injury
  20. field — a subject
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. pitcher — a jug

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