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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. field — for sport
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — a series
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. field — farmland
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. bound — tied together
  11. field — a subject
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. bound — obliged
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bound — certain
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bear — the animal
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. rash — hasty
  22. tear — to rip
  23. bear — the animal
  24. branch — a division

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