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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. branch — a division
  8. file — a document
  9. squash — to crush
  10. file — a line of people
  11. spring — the season
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. present — there
  14. snap — to click
  15. spring — a coil
  16. present — a gift
  17. spring — of water
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. squash — the sport
  20. file — a tool
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. foot — a measure
  23. present — the time now
  24. racket — for tennis

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