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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 116 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. bass — low music
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. spring — a coil
  7. club — for golf
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bass — the fish
  10. club — for dancing
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. spring — of water
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. stem — to come from
  19. dip — to sink
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. spring — the season
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. club — a group
  24. dip — to dunk

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