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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: branch · court · wind · jam · rest · craft · pitcher · snap

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. rest — what's left
  5. craft — a skill
  6. court — of a king
  7. craft — boats
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. court — of law
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. branch — a division
  17. rest — what's left
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. snap — to click
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. court — for sport

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