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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. branch — a division
  3. court — of a king
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. last — finally
  7. track — a path
  8. lean — to bend
  9. cell — a phone
  10. court — for sport
  11. cell — in biology
  12. track — to keep track
  13. lean — thin
  14. court — of law
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. last — final
  17. last — to go on
  18. perch — the fish
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — in football
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. track — a song

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