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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 120 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 sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. saw — the tool
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. squash — to crush
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — a partner
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. saw — the tool
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. mark — a trace
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. spring — a coil
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. mate — to breed
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mark — a grade
  21. spring — of water
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. squash — the sport
  24. spring — the season

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