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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. kid — child
  5. court — of a king
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. court — for sport
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. chair — a leader
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. kid — to tease
  13. fork — in a road
  14. bound — tied together
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. court — of law
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. bound — obliged
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. bound — certain
  24. branch — of a tree

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