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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 like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. branch — a division
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. pound — a weight
  9. spring — of water
  10. march — the month
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. spring — the season
  14. pop — music
  15. pop — soda
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. march — music
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. pop — to visit
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. march — the month
  24. spring — a coil

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