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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wound — an injury
  4. net — after costs
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. staff — employees
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. bound — certain
  10. branch — a division
  11. pop — soda
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — tied together
  15. wound — an injury
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a skill
  18. staff — employees
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — for catching
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. branch — of a tree

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