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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. branch — a division
  3. board — a committee
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. mark — a grade
  7. wind — moving air
  8. net — for catching
  9. spring — the season
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. spring — of water
  13. court — for sport
  14. spring — a coil
  15. court — of a king
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. net — after costs
  22. mark — a trace
  23. board — to get on
  24. court — of law

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