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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. spring — the season
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rush — hurry
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. wound — an injury
  8. rock — a stone
  9. rock — music
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. capital — a city
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. capital — money
  18. branch — a division
  19. shower — rain
  20. spring — a coil
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. spring — of water
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. safe — a strongbox

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