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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. rush — hurry
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. net — in sport
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. net — after costs
  8. field — a subject
  9. net — for catching
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. hand — in cards
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. hand — help
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. field — for sport
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. field — farmland
  23. plane — a tool
  24. hide — to keep secret

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