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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. field — farmland
  3. spell — letters
  4. field — for sport
  5. firm — a company
  6. spring — the season
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. firm — steady
  9. roll — a list
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spell — magic
  12. bass — the fish
  13. branch — a division
  14. roll — a cake
  15. firm — decided
  16. bass — low music
  17. chip — for betting
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. field — a subject
  21. spring — of water
  22. chip — to eat
  23. spring — a coil
  24. branch — of a tree

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