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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: content · bore · bat · branch · arm · pit · wake · fan

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. content — happy
  4. wake — a trail
  5. pit — in a race
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. bore — to tire
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. branch — a division
  22. pit — a hole
  23. content — the amount
  24. arm — a part of something

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