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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 120 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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. chest — of your body
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. spell — letters
  6. chest — of your body
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. current — electric
  11. current — of water
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. content — happy
  14. lie — to recline
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — a short time
  18. content — the amount
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. branch — a division
  21. sharp — clever
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. chest — a box
  24. current — happening now

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