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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. branch — a division
  3. capital — a city
  4. wound — an injury
  5. file — a line of people
  6. perch — the fish
  7. wound — an injury
  8. file — a document
  9. capital — money
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wake — a trail
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. cue — a hint
  17. cue — a signal
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. cue — for pool
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. file — a tool

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