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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 hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. land — to come down
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. object — a thing
  6. rush — hurry
  7. bass — low music
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. land — ground
  13. branch — a division
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. land — a country
  16. stock — shares
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. object — to protest
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — the fish
  22. stock — goods
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. object — an aim

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