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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · pitch · season · bat · net · snap · chip · branch

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. net — in sport
  5. branch — a division
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. chip — for betting
  8. net — after costs
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. season — of the year
  11. bat — the animal
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — completely
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. snap — to click
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. net — for catching
  23. chip — to eat
  24. mine — for digging

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