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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. lie — to recline
  7. cold — not warm
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. staff — employees
  11. game — a match
  12. cold — an illness
  13. mate — to breed
  14. capital — money
  15. staff — employees
  16. branch — a division
  17. staff — a stick
  18. mate — a friend
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. foot — a measure
  22. game — wild animals
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. capital — a city

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