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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. branch — a division
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. scale — size or range
  6. season — in sport
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. board — a committee
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. season — of the year
  14. pit — a hole
  15. scale — in music
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. board — to get on
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. mine — for digging
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. branch — of a bank

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