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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. branch — a division
  4. foot — a measure
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. charge — electricity
  7. snap — to click
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. saw — the tool
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. charge — a price
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. charge — in control
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. saw — the tool

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