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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: branch · hand · pound · toast · fine · lie

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. 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. toast — the most admired
  2. hand — in cards
  3. lie — to recline
  4. pound — a weight
  5. fine — high quality
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. fine — all right
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. toast — bread
  18. 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