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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. ground — crushed
  3. hand — help
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. bank — of a river
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. bank — for money
  12. chip — for betting
  13. swing — to play on
  14. field — for sport
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. ground — the earth
  17. bank — for money
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. swing — music
  20. hand — in cards
  21. chip — to eat
  22. ground — a position
  23. branch — a division
  24. swing — in golf

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