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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. lean — thin
  3. file — a tool
  4. spell — magic
  5. land — ground
  6. drill — a practice
  7. lean — to bend
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. branch — a division
  10. file — a line of people
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — army training
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bass — low music
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. file — a document
  17. land — a country
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. land — to come down
  20. bass — the fish
  21. cap — a hat
  22. spell — a short time
  23. cap — of ice
  24. spell — letters

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