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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. cold — not warm
  3. pop — soda
  4. charge — a price
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. chair — a leader
  8. dip — to sink
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. branch — a division
  11. charge — in control
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. charge — electricity
  18. wound — an injury
  19. cold — an illness
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pop — music
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. leaves — to go away

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