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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. present — the time now
  3. net — in sport
  4. swing — to play on
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. net — for catching
  9. present — a gift
  10. net — after costs
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. present — there
  13. wind — moving air
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. season — in sport
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. season — of the year
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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