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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. charge — in control
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — a short time
  6. branch — a division
  7. charge — a price
  8. tear — from crying
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. charge — electricity
  12. craft — boats
  13. craft — a skill
  14. tear — to rip
  15. court — of a king
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. court — of law
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. row — to paddle
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. row — a line
  24. court — for sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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