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

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. bass — low music
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. swing — in golf
  11. branch — a division
  12. chip — to eat
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. squash — to crush
  16. swing — to play on
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. chip — for betting
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. squash — the sport
  21. band — a music group
  22. bass — the fish
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. swing — music

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