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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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. bore — to tire
  6. branch — a division
  7. fork — in a road
  8. shower — rain
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bore — to drill
  12. perch — the fish
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. clip — to cut
  15. deal — to handle
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — low music
  18. clip — a video
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. clip — for paper

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