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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 116 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. ground — a position
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. drill — a practice
  8. branch — a division
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. ground — the earth
  11. drill — army training
  12. bat — the animal
  13. mine — for digging
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. snap — to click
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. drill — the tool
  21. pass — a permit
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. ground — crushed
  24. bowl — a dish

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