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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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Word bank
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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: craft · game · mate · roll · pit · land · branch · tear

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. mate — a partner
  4. roll — a list
  5. land — ground
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. land — a country
  10. pit — a hole
  11. mate — a friend
  12. roll — a cake
  13. mate — to breed
  14. craft — a skill
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. craft — boats
  17. land — to come down
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. tear — from crying
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. pit — in a race
  24. tear — to rip

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