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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. charge — electricity
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. charge — in control
  6. cell — in biology
  7. mark — a trace
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. hand — in cards
  11. mark — a grade
  12. drill — army training
  13. drill — the tool
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. branch — a division
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. squash — to crush
  20. squash — the sport
  21. charge — a price
  22. hand — help
  23. drill — a practice
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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