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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. branch — a division
  3. club — for dancing
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. can — a tin
  6. tear — to rip
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. bass — the fish
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. wound — an injury
  14. can — to be able to
  15. bass — low music
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. wound — an injury
  19. can — a tin
  20. tear — from crying
  21. club — for golf
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. club — a group
  24. hide — animal skin

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