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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — the time now
  3. spell — a short time
  4. mark — a grade
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. branch — a division
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. clip — for paper
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. pitch — completely
  11. mate — a partner
  12. mine — for digging
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. present — there
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. clip — a video
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. spell — magic
  20. mate — a friend
  21. spell — letters
  22. mark — a trace
  23. mate — to breed
  24. clip — to cut

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