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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 116 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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. ground — crushed
  6. pit — a hole
  7. ground — the earth
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. pit — in a race
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. cap — of ice
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. cap — a hat
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. clip — a video
  17. pound — a weight
  18. branch — a division
  19. clip — for paper
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. clip — to cut
  23. ground — a position
  24. cap — a lid

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