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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. roll — a list
  3. scale — in music
  4. branch — a division
  5. present — the time now
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. bat — the animal
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. band — a music group
  11. tear — from crying
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to click
  14. band — a ring
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. present — a gift
  19. present — there
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. tear — from crying
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. roll — a cake

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