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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. rash — hasty
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bass — low music
  7. craft — boats
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. clip — for paper
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. bass — the fish
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. clip — a video
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — in football
  18. craft — a skill
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — the animal
  21. branch — a division
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. clip — to cut

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