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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. rest — a break
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — ground
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. land — a country
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. rest — what's left
  11. bass — the fish
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. field — a subject
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. field — farmland
  16. bass — low music
  17. branch — a division
  18. pound — a weight
  19. ground — a position
  20. rest — what's left
  21. ground — the earth
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. field — for sport

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