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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. rush — hurry
  4. row — a line
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. present — there
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. cold — an illness
  10. branch — a division
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. present — a gift
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. toast — bread
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. row — to paddle
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. present — the time now
  24. scale — size or range

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