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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  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. can — a tin
  2. can — a tin
  3. rock — music
  4. spell — magic
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. rest — what's left
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — a short time
  11. snap — to click
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. mine — for digging
  19. can — to be able to
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. rock — a stone
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rest — what's left
  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