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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: straw · race · lie · club · ball · kick · mark · branch

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. branch — a division
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. club — a group
  6. mark — a grade
  7. ball — a dance
  8. mark — a trace
  9. lie — to recline
  10. club — for golf
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. club — for dancing
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. race — humankind
  18. ball — a great time
  19. kick — in football
  20. race — a contest
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. race — the arms race
  24. mark — to pay attention

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