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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. chip — for betting
  3. cap — a hat
  4. present — a gift
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. spring — a coil
  8. scale — size or range
  9. cap — of ice
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. present — there
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. branch — a division
  14. scale — in music
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. spring — the season
  19. cap — a lid
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. chip — to eat
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. spring — of water
  24. present — the time now

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