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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 chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  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. mine — belonging to me
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. scale — size or range
  6. mine — for digging
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bear — the animal
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. net — in sport
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. net — after costs
  15. bear — the animal
  16. net — for catching
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. scale — in music
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. branch — a division
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — music
  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