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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. chest — of your body
  5. ground — a position
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — music
  8. swing — in golf
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. scale — in music
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. ground — crushed
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. chest — a box
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. prune — to trim
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. branch — a division
  19. prune — to trim
  20. scale — size or range
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. chest — of your body
  24. ground — the earth

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