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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. season — of the year
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. shower — to wash
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. cold — an illness
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. cold — not warm
  20. branch — a division
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. court — for sport
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. ruler — for measuring

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