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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 116 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: trunk · bound · swing · stock · branch · racket · scale · game

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. swing — music
  3. swing — to play on
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bound — tied together
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. stock — shares
  11. game — a match
  12. game — wild animals
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. scale — in music
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. bound — obliged
  20. scale — size or range
  21. bound — certain
  22. stock — goods
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. branch — a division

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