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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 116 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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. staff — employees
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. degree — from a university
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. march — music
  11. degree — an amount
  12. lean — thin
  13. rock — a stone
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. rock — music
  16. degree — temperature
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wind — moving air
  21. branch — a division
  22. lean — to bend
  23. wind — moving air
  24. staff — employees

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