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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. pop — to visit
  4. pop — soda
  5. tear — to rip
  6. pit — in a race
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. court — for sport
  9. court — of a king
  10. branch — a division
  11. court — of law
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. board — a committee
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. swing — in golf
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. board — to get on
  19. swing — to play on
  20. tear — from crying
  21. swing — music
  22. pop — music
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pit — a hole

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