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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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. last — final
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. lie — to recline
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. last — to go on
  8. capital — money
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. can — a tin
  12. cold — an illness
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. last — finally
  15. capital — a city
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. can — to be able to
  18. cold — not warm
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. can — a tin
  23. kick — in football
  24. mouse — the animal

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