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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. object — a thing
  3. field — for sport
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. rest — what's left
  7. pass — a permit
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. field — a subject
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. swing — in golf
  12. bat — the animal
  13. squash — the sport
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. object — to protest
  16. squash — to crush
  17. object — an aim
  18. swing — to play on
  19. swing — music
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — a break
  22. field — farmland
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. pass — to spend time

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