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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. rest — what's left
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. branch — a division
  5. land — ground
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. land — a country
  8. kid — to tease
  9. field — farmland
  10. staff — a stick
  11. staff — employees
  12. wake — a trail
  13. kid — child
  14. field — for sport
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. staff — employees
  18. rest — what's left
  19. stock — goods
  20. field — a subject
  21. stock — shares
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. land — to come down
  24. rest — a break

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