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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mate — a partner
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bank — for money
  7. net — after costs
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — completely
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bank — of a river
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. row — to paddle
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. branch — a division
  17. bank — for money
  18. net — for catching
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. net — in sport
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. mate — a friend
  23. row — a line
  24. wake — a trail

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