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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. row — a line
  4. field — for sport
  5. row — to paddle
  6. craft — a skill
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. content — the amount
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wake — a trail
  12. field — farmland
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. field — a subject
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. craft — boats
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — happy
  22. kick — in football
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. arm — part of the 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