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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. fine — all right
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. fine — high quality
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. bound — tied together
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. branch — a division
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. mine — for digging
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bound — obliged
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. shower — rain
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bound — certain

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