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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. tear — from crying
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. court — of a king
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. swing — in golf
  11. court — of law
  12. vault — a safe
  13. branch — a division
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. court — for sport
  16. swing — to play on
  17. snap — to click
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. tear — from crying
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. tear — to rip
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. swing — music

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