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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 120 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 laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. chest — of your body
  5. branch — a division
  6. fork — in a road
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. shower — to wash
  10. wound — an injury
  11. shower — rain
  12. pass — a permit
  13. chair — a leader
  14. chest — a box
  15. fine — high quality
  16. fine — all right
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. fine — a penalty

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