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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. rest — what's left
  3. tube — the underground
  4. rash — a series
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. race — a contest
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. rest — what's left
  10. tube — a container
  11. rash — hasty
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. swing — to play on
  14. ground — crushed
  15. race — the arms race
  16. swing — music
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. branch — a division
  19. pitch — completely
  20. rest — a break
  21. race — humankind
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — the earth
  24. swing — in golf

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