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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. clip — to cut
  3. ground — a position
  4. clip — a video
  5. land — ground
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. bear — the animal
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. clip — for paper
  14. ground — crushed
  15. land — a country
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. land — to come down
  19. branch — a division
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. chair — a leader
  24. trunk — of a car

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