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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. drill — a practice
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. drill — army training
  6. chair — a leader
  7. bear — the animal
  8. last — to go on
  9. bound — tied together
  10. last — finally
  11. branch — a division
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. last — final
  17. bound — obliged
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bound — certain
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bear — the animal
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. bear — to put up with

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