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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: board · toast · cell · tear · wind · branch

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. cell — in biology
  4. branch — a division
  5. wind — moving air
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. toast — bread
  9. tear — to rip
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. board — a committee
  12. wind — moving air
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cell — a phone
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. board — to get on
  18. cell — in a prison

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