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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 120 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. branch — a division
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. tear — from crying
  10. march — the month
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bass — the fish
  16. sharp — clever
  17. tear — from crying
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bass — low music
  20. tear — to rip
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. mug — to rob
  23. mug — a cup
  24. sharp — exactly

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