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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 ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. clip — to cut
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. last — final
  5. spell — a short time
  6. branch — a division
  7. rule — a law
  8. spell — magic
  9. mark — a grade
  10. bore — to tire
  11. bore — to drill
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. mark — a trace
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. spell — letters
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. last — finally
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. last — to go on
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. rule — government

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