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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — for digging
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. ball — a great time
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. ball — a dance
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. lean — thin
  16. bear — the animal
  17. lean — to bend
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. snap — to click
  22. bear — the animal
  23. plane — a tool
  24. ball — a round shape

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