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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. lean — thin
  5. dip — to sink
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. court — for sport
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. court — of a king
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. clip — for paper
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. lean — to bend
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. court — of law
  20. clip — a video
  21. clip — to cut
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. branch — a division
  24. pitch — a sports field

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