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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 116 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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. land — to come down
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bark — to shout
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wound — an injury
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. land — ground
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. can — a tin
  19. mine — for digging
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wake — a trail
  22. can — a tin
  23. land — a country
  24. leaves — lets stay

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