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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  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. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rock — music
  3. swing — music
  4. swing — to play on
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. rock — a stone
  9. game — wild animals
  10. branch — a division
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. game — a match
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. swing — in golf
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. plane — a tool
  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