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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. march — music
  5. ball — a great time
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. branch — a division
  8. band — a music group
  9. march — the month
  10. band — a ring
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. ball — a dance
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. straw — dry grass

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