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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: branch · chair · pitch · kick · wind · ground

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. ground — the earth
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. branch — a division
  6. wind — moving air
  7. ground — a position
  8. chair — a leader
  9. kick — in football
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. ground — crushed
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wind — moving air
  18. pitch — completely

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