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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: straw · field · mate · branch · mouse · file · ground · bore

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. file — a document
  4. ground — a position
  5. field — a subject
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. branch — a division
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bore — to drill
  12. file — a line of people
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. ground — the earth
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bore — to tire
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. file — a tool
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — for sport
  21. mate — a friend
  22. ground — crushed
  23. mate — to breed
  24. straw — a straw man

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