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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. ground — a position
  3. game — wild animals
  4. stem — to come from
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ground — crushed
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. game — a match
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. squash — to crush
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. fall — to drop
  15. ground — the earth
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. fall — the season
  18. squash — the sport
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. fall — to drop

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