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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. branch — a division
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — a stick
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — not warm
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. lie — to recline
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. chest — of your body
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. staff — employees
  24. capital — a city

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