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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. bank — of a river
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. last — final
  5. content — happy
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. firm — a company
  8. branch — a division
  9. bank — for money
  10. last — finally
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. firm — steady
  13. bank — for money
  14. bound — obliged
  15. snap — to click
  16. content — the amount
  17. bound — tied together
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. last — to go on
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. bound — certain
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. branch — of a bank

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