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

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. scale — in music
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. swing — music
  6. fall — to drop
  7. land — to come down
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. cap — a hat
  11. land — a country
  12. cap — a lid
  13. branch — a division
  14. swing — to play on
  15. cap — of ice
  16. scale — size or range
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. swing — in golf

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