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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — crushed
  3. cold — not warm
  4. charge — electricity
  5. charge — in control
  6. branch — a division
  7. hand — help
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. hand — in cards
  10. fork — in a road
  11. saw — the tool
  12. cold — an illness
  13. ground — the earth
  14. charge — a price
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. saw — the tool
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. hand — 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