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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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. mouse — the animal
  4. kick — in football
  5. wake — a trail
  6. key — the most important part
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. current — happening now
  10. field — farmland
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. current — of water
  14. wound — an injury
  15. key — in music
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. key — for a lock
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. branch — a division
  24. current — electric

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