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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. file — a tool
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. bound — certain
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. bound — tied together
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. bound — obliged
  16. file — a document
  17. club — for dancing
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. club — for golf
  20. club — a group
  21. kick — in football
  22. foot — a measure
  23. file — a line of people
  24. branch — a division

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