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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 124 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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. branch — a division
  5. pop — music
  6. spring — of water
  7. pop — to visit
  8. bear — the animal
  9. face — to point toward
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bear — the animal
  12. spring — a coil
  13. pop — soda
  14. face — to confront
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — for paper
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. spring — the season
  21. face — part of the head
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. clip — a video
  24. wind — to turn a key

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