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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 120 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: deal · wake · spell · file · branch · pitcher · bore · mine

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. spell — letters
  5. wake — a trail
  6. bore — to tire
  7. spell — a short time
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bore — to drill
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. file — a document
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a line of people
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. spell — magic
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. branch — a division

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