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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. last — final
  6. season — of the year
  7. wound — an injury
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — a practice
  12. season — in sport
  13. branch — a division
  14. land — a country
  15. can — a tin
  16. land — to come down
  17. last — to go on
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. can — a tin
  20. wound — an injury
  21. last — finally
  22. land — ground
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. drill — army training

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