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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 is an ace ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. march — the month
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. present — the time now
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. march — the month
  14. present — a gift
  15. march — music
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. content — happy
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wound — an injury
  21. present — there
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. branch — a division
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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