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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. cap — a hat
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. scale — in music
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. cap — of ice
  9. pop — music
  10. branch — a division
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. drill — the tool
  13. pop — soda
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. plane — a tool
  16. drill — army training
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. drill — a practice
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. cap — a lid
  21. bat — the animal
  22. scale — size or range
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. pop — to visit

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