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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. chip — to eat
  6. mate — a partner
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. land — a country
  9. land — to come down
  10. squash — the sport
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. land — ground
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. scale — size or range
  18. branch — a division
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mate — a friend
  21. wake — a trail
  22. scale — in music
  23. chip — for betting
  24. mate — to breed

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