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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 120 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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rule — government
  4. mate — to breed
  5. capital — a city
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. capital — money
  8. bank — for money
  9. shower — rain
  10. rule — a law
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bank — of a river
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — a division
  16. mate — a friend
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. mate — a partner
  23. bank — for money
  24. rule — to rule out

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