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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. face — part of the head
  3. scale — in music
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. chair — a leader
  6. branch — a division
  7. face — to confront
  8. key — the most important part
  9. court — for sport
  10. wind — moving air
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. face — to point toward
  17. key — in music
  18. court — of a king
  19. wind — moving air
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. court — of law
  23. key — for a lock
  24. cabinet — ministers

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