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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. present — the time now
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. present — there
  6. ball — a great time
  7. shower — to wash
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bound — tied together
  12. shower — rain
  13. branch — a division
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. dip — to sink
  21. ball — a dance
  22. bound — obliged
  23. present — a gift
  24. bound — certain

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