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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. charge — in control
  4. row — a line
  5. kid — child
  6. court — for sport
  7. branch — a division
  8. last — to go on
  9. charge — a price
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. last — finally
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. wake — a trail
  15. last — final
  16. court — of law
  17. kid — to tease
  18. charge — electricity
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. court — of a king
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. row — to paddle
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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