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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 116 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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. deal — to handle
  4. track — a song
  5. bat — the animal
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. shower — rain
  9. content — happy
  10. lie — to recline
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. ball — a dance
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. ball — a great time
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. shower — to wash
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. content — the amount
  20. track — a path
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. lie — an untruth

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