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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. net — after costs
  3. squash — to crush
  4. scale — size or range
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. club — for golf
  7. board — a committee
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cap — of ice
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. net — for catching
  12. club — a group
  13. cap — a lid
  14. club — for dancing
  15. scale — in music
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. squash — the sport
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. wind — moving air
  22. board — to get on
  23. net — in sport
  24. branch — a division

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