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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 116 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 shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rash — a series
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. wind — moving air
  10. court — of a king
  11. spell — magic
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. fine — all right
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. branch — a division
  19. court — of law
  20. rash — hasty
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. court — for sport
  24. spell — letters

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