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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 120 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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — for digging
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. mate — to breed
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. ground — crushed
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. ground — a position
  14. lean — thin
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. lean — to bend
  17. bat — the animal
  18. ground — the earth
  19. mate — a partner
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. mate — a friend
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. branch — a division

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