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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. spring — a coil
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. net — for catching
  6. spring — of water
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. cell — a phone
  10. branch — a division
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. cell — in biology
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. pit — in a race
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — in sport
  18. pit — a hole
  19. perch — the fish
  20. spring — the season
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. perch — for a bird

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