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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: drill · branch · clip · chip · toast · rash · deal · hand

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. hand — in cards
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — a series
  5. clip — to cut
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. toast — bread
  8. drill — the tool
  9. clip — for paper
  10. chip — for betting
  11. hand — help
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. drill — a practice
  14. clip — a video
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. rash — hasty
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. branch — a division
  19. deal — to handle
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. chip — to eat
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. drill — army training

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