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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — to breed
  5. land — a country
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. branch — a division
  8. scale — size or range
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. land — ground
  11. spring — of water
  12. content — the amount
  13. prune — to trim
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. tube — a container
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. tube — the underground
  18. spring — a coil
  19. prune — to trim
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. land — to come down
  23. spring — the season
  24. content — happy

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