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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. branch — a division
  3. bank — for money
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bank — for money
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a friend
  12. fall — to drop
  13. tear — from crying
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. fall — the season
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bank — of a river
  20. mate — a partner
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. fall — to drop

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