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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 116 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. net — for catching
  3. present — there
  4. wound — an injury
  5. ground — a position
  6. present — the time now
  7. craft — boats
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. ground — crushed
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. net — after costs
  13. branch — a division
  14. net — in sport
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. wound — an injury
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. ground — the earth
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. craft — a skill
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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