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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — all right
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. bore — to drill
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. perch — the fish
  9. bore — to tire
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. branch — a division
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. chair — a leader
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. land — to come down
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. land — ground
  22. squash — the sport
  23. land — a country
  24. squash — the vegetable

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