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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. branch — a division
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. chest — a box
  7. sharp — clever
  8. stock — shares
  9. court — of a king
  10. chest — of your body
  11. court — of law
  12. chest — of your body
  13. net — for catching
  14. court — for sport
  15. lie — to recline
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. net — in sport
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. net — after costs
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. deal — to handle
  24. stock — goods

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