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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. court — for sport
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. row — a line
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. wound — an injury
  9. court — of law
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. last — finally
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. lean — thin
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. row — to paddle
  17. last — final
  18. court — of a king
  19. tear — from crying
  20. last — to go on
  21. wound — an injury
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. lean — to bend

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