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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. drill — a practice
  6. band — a music group
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — the tool
  9. last — finally
  10. mine — for digging
  11. saw — the tool
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. pitch — completely
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. last — to go on
  21. band — a ring
  22. branch — a division
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. last — final

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