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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. capital — a city
  4. swing — to play on
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. spell — magic
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. cell — in biology
  9. swing — music
  10. spell — letters
  11. capital — money
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. band — a ring
  14. branch — a division
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. band — a music group
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. swing — in golf
  19. spell — a short time
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. kick — in football
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. cell — a phone

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