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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. rule — a law
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. can — a tin
  7. charge — electricity
  8. branch — a division
  9. bore — to drill
  10. can — a tin
  11. charge — a price
  12. perch — the fish
  13. cold — an illness
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. charge — in control
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. bore — to tire
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. kid — child
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kid — to tease
  24. can — to be able to

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