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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. squash — the sport
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. capital — money
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. kick — in football
  15. capital — a city
  16. squash — to crush
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. bark — to shout
  20. branch — a division
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. branch — of a tree

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