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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. spring — a coil
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. wind — moving air
  14. chip — to eat
  15. branch — a division
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. wind — moving air
  19. spring — the season
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. spring — of water
  24. chip — for betting

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