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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. branch — a division
  3. march — the month
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. lean — to bend
  11. band — a music group
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. march — music
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. march — the month
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. lean — thin
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. tube — the underground
  22. tube — a container
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. band — a ring

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