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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. wind — moving air
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. swing — in golf
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. swing — music
  15. squash — the sport
  16. swing — to play on
  17. mine — for digging
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pitch — completely
  20. wind — moving air
  21. squash — to crush
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. pit — a hole

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