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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. land — a country
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mark — a grade
  12. mine — for digging
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. content — happy
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. content — the amount
  18. branch — a division
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. band — a music group
  22. band — a ring
  23. land — ground
  24. land — to come down

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