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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. rest — a break
  3. drill — a practice
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. march — the month
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — the tool
  11. rest — what's left
  12. root — of a plant
  13. wind — moving air
  14. march — the month
  15. march — music
  16. rest — what's left
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. root — the cause
  19. swing — music
  20. wind — moving air
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. swing — to play on
  23. root — of a word
  24. branch — a division

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