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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 120 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's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. board — to get on
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. board — a committee
  9. kid — to tease
  10. spell — a short time
  11. kid — child
  12. clip — to cut
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. spell — letters
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. branch — a division
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. clip — a video
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. clip — for paper
  23. chest — of your body
  24. spell — magic

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