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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. file — a document
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. kid — to tease
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. object — to protest
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. object — an aim
  10. sharp — clever
  11. file — a line of people
  12. kid — child
  13. stand — to bear
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. content — happy
  16. branch — a division
  17. content — the amount
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. season — of the year
  21. file — a tool
  22. object — a thing
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. sharp — exactly

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