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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. bear — the animal
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. branch — a division
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. row — to paddle
  10. band — a ring
  11. band — a music group
  12. rash — a series
  13. bear — the animal
  14. fall — the season
  15. squash — to crush
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. rash — hasty
  19. fall — to drop
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. row — a line
  24. patient — a sick person

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