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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. wound — an injury
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. wound — an injury
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — a gift
  9. tear — to rip
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rash — a series
  12. branch — a division
  13. row — a line
  14. tear — from crying
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. rash — hasty
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. stock — goods
  19. row — to paddle
  20. present — there
  21. stock — shares
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. tear — from crying

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