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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. land — a country
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. hand — help
  5. land — to come down
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. hand — in cards
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. key — for a lock
  10. race — humankind
  11. key — in music
  12. race — a contest
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. key — the most important part
  15. deal — to handle
  16. ground — crushed
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. race — the arms race
  19. ground — the earth
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. land — ground
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. ground — a position

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