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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. spell — a short time
  3. rock — music
  4. drill — army training
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. branch — a division
  7. pop — soda
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mate — to breed
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. spell — letters
  12. cell — in biology
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rock — a stone
  15. cell — a phone
  16. drill — the tool
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. pop — music
  19. pop — to visit
  20. mate — a friend
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. drill — a practice
  23. spell — magic
  24. branch — of a bank

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