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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. rash — a series
  3. branch — a division
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. chest — of your body
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mine — for digging
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. saw — the tool
  10. clip — to cut
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. toast — bread
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. chest — a box
  15. saw — the tool
  16. rash — hasty
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. clip — a video
  21. lie — to recline
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. chest — of your body
  24. lie — an untruth

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