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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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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: key · chest · branch · lean · saw · face · scale · shower

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. saw — the tool
  3. scale — size or range
  4. face — to confront
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. key — the most important part
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. key — in music
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. face — to point toward
  14. chest — of your body
  15. shower — rain
  16. saw — the tool
  17. face — part of the head
  18. lean — to bend
  19. scale — in music
  20. shower — to wash
  21. key — for a lock
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  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