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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. last — finally
  3. mate — to breed
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. last — final
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. pop — to visit
  10. stand — to bear
  11. branch — a division
  12. mate — a friend
  13. pop — soda
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. fork — in a road
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. mate — a partner
  20. last — to go on
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. pop — music
  23. wound — an injury
  24. stand — for spectators

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