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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. season — in sport
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. ground — a position
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. kick — in football
  9. board — to get on
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. board — a committee
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. bat — the animal
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a line
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. season — of the year
  23. ground — crushed
  24. board — a flat piece

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