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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. branch — a division
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. firm — steady
  6. chest — of your body
  7. mate — a friend
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. mate — a partner
  11. chest — of your body
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — the fruit
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. chest — a box
  17. clip — for paper
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. firm — a company
  20. firm — decided
  21. stand — to bear
  22. mate — to breed
  23. clip — a video
  24. clip — to cut

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