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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. rest — what's left
  4. club — for dancing
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. rock — music
  7. root — of a word
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. club — for golf
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. rest — a break
  14. root — the cause
  15. club — a group
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. rock — a stone
  18. branch — a division
  19. deal — to handle
  20. cold — an illness
  21. root — of a plant
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rest — what's left
  24. cold — the Cold War

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