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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. club — for dancing
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. board — to get on
  5. club — for golf
  6. band — a music group
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. board — a committee
  10. charge — electricity
  11. race — a contest
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. charge — a price
  14. band — a ring
  15. capital — money
  16. race — humankind
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. capital — a city
  19. race — the arms race
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. dip — to sink
  22. charge — in control
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. club — a 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