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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 cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. tear — from crying
  5. chair — a leader
  6. scale — size or range
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. content — the amount
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. scale — in music
  13. roll — a list
  14. tear — to rip
  15. rule — government
  16. roll — a cake
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. branch — a division
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — to come from
  23. rule — a law
  24. scale — for weighing

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