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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. press — a publisher
  5. file — a tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. ball — a dance
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. land — to come down
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. file — a document
  16. ball — a great time
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. press — to push
  19. land — a country
  20. land — ground
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. bark — to shout
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. press — newspapers

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