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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. court — of law
  6. bank — for money
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. chair — a leader
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — of a river
  12. last — finally
  13. rash — hasty
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. vault — a safe
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. court — for sport
  19. fork — in a road
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. branch — a division
  22. court — of a king
  23. rash — a series
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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