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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. squash — to crush
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. chair — a leader
  9. hand — in cards
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. dip — to sink
  12. ground — a position
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. hand — help
  18. ground — crushed
  19. wind — moving air
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. ground — the earth
  23. squash — the sport
  24. wind — moving air

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