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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  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. roll — a list
  3. tear — from crying
  4. drill — a practice
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. rest — a break
  7. tear — to rip
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. tear — from crying
  10. drill — the tool
  11. dip — to sink
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. roll — a cake
  16. rest — what's left
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. rest — what's left
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. drill — army training
  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