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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bore — to tire
  4. rash — hasty
  5. race — a contest
  6. branch — a division
  7. row — to paddle
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bore — to drill
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. cold — not warm
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. rash — a series
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cold — an illness
  19. race — the arms race
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. row — a line
  24. race — humankind

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