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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: arm · band · branch · bore · straw · ground · march · stem

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. branch — a division
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. march — music
  5. ground — crushed
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. ground — the earth
  9. band — a ring
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bore — to drill
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a music group
  18. stem — to come from
  19. bore — to tire
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. march — the month
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. ground — a position

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