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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. land — to come down
  13. sharp — clever
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. land — ground
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. land — a country
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. mine — for digging
  23. hand — in cards
  24. branch — a division

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