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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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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: straw · branch · mate · saw · face · swing · nail · tear

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. tear — to rip
  4. swing — to play on
  5. saw — the tool
  6. face — to confront
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. face — to point toward
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. swing — music
  11. tear — from crying
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. branch — a division
  14. mate — a partner
  15. swing — in golf
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. mate — a friend
  18. tear — from crying
  19. face — part of the head
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. saw — the tool
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. mate — to breed

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