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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. bore — to tire
  3. clip — a video
  4. club — for golf
  5. rush — hurry
  6. clip — for paper
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. content — happy
  11. content — the amount
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. branch — a division
  14. object — a thing
  15. club — for dancing
  16. object — to protest
  17. club — a group
  18. kick — in football
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. bore — to drill
  24. object — an aim

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