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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. object — to protest
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. wound — an injury
  7. face — to confront
  8. chest — a box
  9. object — an aim
  10. dip — to sink
  11. chest — of your body
  12. face — part of the head
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wound — an injury
  15. scale — in music
  16. branch — a division
  17. object — a thing
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. scale — size or range
  20. current — electric
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. current — happening now
  24. current — of water

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