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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. bank — for money
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. net — after costs
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. press — a publisher
  8. pound — a weight
  9. bank — of a river
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. hand — in cards
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. net — in sport
  16. press — newspapers
  17. press — to push
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. bank — for money
  22. net — for catching
  23. branch — a division
  24. patient — a sick person

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