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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. root — of a plant
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. swing — in golf
  8. sharp — clever
  9. root — the cause
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. root — of a word
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. swing — music
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. 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