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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bass — low music
  4. branch — a division
  5. content — the amount
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. track — to keep track
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. track — a song
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — there
  16. track — a path
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bass — the fish
  20. mine — for digging
  21. band — a ring
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. present — the time now
  24. band — a music group

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