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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. bore — to drill
  3. branch — a division
  4. file — a line of people
  5. rash — a series
  6. bore — to tire
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. rash — hasty
  9. clip — for paper
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. lean — thin
  12. file — a document
  13. deal — to handle
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. clip — to cut
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. board — a committee
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. file — a tool
  20. clip — a video
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. board — to get on
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. bore — gave birth

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