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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. land — ground
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. roll — a cake
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. land — a country
  8. track — to keep track
  9. lie — to recline
  10. track — a song
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. track — a path
  13. pop — music
  14. pop — to visit
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. pop — soda
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. branch — a division
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. roll — a list
  21. land — to come down
  22. chair — a leader
  23. branch — of a bank
  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