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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. field — a subject
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. land — a country
  6. land — to come down
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. rush — hurry
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. branch — a division
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. file — a document
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. file — a line of people
  17. field — for sport
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. file — a tool
  22. field — farmland
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. land — ground

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