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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. branch — a division
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. clip — for paper
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. track — a song
  12. mark — a trace
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. dip — to sink
  16. track — to keep track
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. bore — to drill
  24. track — a path

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