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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. branch — a division
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. swing — in golf
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. swing — to play on
  7. rash — a series
  8. season — of the year
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. season — in sport
  12. rash — hasty
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. swing — music
  15. pit — a hole
  16. snap — to click
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. pit — in a race
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. branch — of a bank

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