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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. branch — a division
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. court — for sport
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. content — happy
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. content — the amount
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. prune — to trim
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. stock — shares
  19. court — of law
  20. court — of a king
  21. prune — to trim
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. stock — goods

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