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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 116 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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. dip — to sink
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. track — to keep track
  9. wake — a trail
  10. mate — a partner
  11. branch — a division
  12. mate — a friend
  13. scale — size or range
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. mate — to breed
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. track — a path
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. scale — in music
  24. track — a song

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