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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: present · bat · band · cabinet · branch · kid · shower · perch

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. band — a ring
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. band — a music group
  12. present — a gift
  13. present — the time now
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. kid — child
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bat — the animal
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. branch — a division
  22. perch — the fish
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — to wash

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