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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. charge — a price
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. lean — thin
  5. cold — an illness
  6. face — to point toward
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. track — to keep track
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. branch — a division
  12. lean — to bend
  13. face — to confront
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. bass — the fish
  18. charge — electricity
  19. cold — not warm
  20. charge — in control
  21. track — a path
  22. face — part of the head
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bass — low music

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