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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. swing — music
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cold — an illness
  5. craft — a skill
  6. swing — to play on
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. pitch — completely
  9. craft — boats
  10. cold — not warm
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. cell — in biology
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bark — to shout
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — a stone
  23. branch — a division
  24. swing — in golf

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