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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. net — for catching
  4. wound — an injury
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. firm — decided
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. bulb — for light
  9. kid — child
  10. craft — a skill
  11. craft — boats
  12. chest — of your body
  13. firm — steady
  14. branch — a division
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. chest — of your body
  17. firm — a company
  18. net — after costs
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. chest — a box
  21. bulb — for light
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. net — in sport
  24. wound — an injury

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