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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cap — a lid
  3. charge — electricity
  4. cap — of ice
  5. spring — of water
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. squash — to crush
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. squash — the sport
  10. spring — a coil
  11. branch — a division
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. charge — in control
  14. hand — help
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. hand — in cards
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cap — a hat
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. charge — a price
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. spring — the season

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