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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. land — a country
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. hand — in cards
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. hand — help
  9. bore — to tire
  10. pop — soda
  11. stem — to come from
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pop — music
  17. land — ground
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. pop — to visit
  20. land — to come down
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bore — to drill
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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