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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. hand — help
  3. ground — the earth
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. fall — to drop
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fall — the season
  9. ground — crushed
  10. land — a country
  11. roll — a list
  12. mug — a face
  13. bound — certain
  14. ground — a position
  15. land — to come down
  16. fall — to drop
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — obliged
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — a division
  22. roll — a cake
  23. mug — a cup
  24. land — ground

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