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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. land — a country
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. rash — a series
  8. can — to be able to
  9. capital — money
  10. can — a tin
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. clip — for paper
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. capital — a city
  16. land — to come down
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. kick — in football
  20. clip — a video
  21. land — ground
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. rash — hasty
  24. branch — a division

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