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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. wound — an injury
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. chest — of your body
  5. content — happy
  6. mate — a friend
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. branch — a division
  9. wound — an injury
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mug — a cup
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. mug — a face
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. content — the amount
  20. snap — to click
  21. chest — a box
  22. mate — a partner
  23. foot — a measure
  24. chest — of your body

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