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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bank — of a river
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — magic
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — for money
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. pound — a weight
  11. rash — hasty
  12. cell — in biology
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. spell — letters
  16. rash — a series
  17. kid — child
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. sharp — clever
  20. branch — a division
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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