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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. game — wild animals
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. court — of a king
  8. chip — for betting
  9. bass — the fish
  10. game — a match
  11. wake — a trail
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. court — of law
  15. court — for sport
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. cold — not warm
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bass — low music
  23. branch — a division
  24. game — a kind of play

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