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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cell — in biology
  4. branch — a division
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. bat — the animal
  8. squash — to crush
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. rush — hurry
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. board — a committee
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a city
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. board — to get on
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cell — a phone
  24. squash — the sport

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