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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — a coil
  6. net — after costs
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. net — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. content — the amount
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. spring — the season
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. content — happy
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. branch — a division

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