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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: chair · club · press · bore · branch · bowl

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. club — for golf
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. club — for dancing
  11. branch — a division
  12. bore — to tire
  13. press — to push
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. press — newspapers
  16. club — a group
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. press — a publisher

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