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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: branch · straw · scale · hide · march · spell · mug · saw

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. mug — a cup
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. branch — a division
  8. saw — the tool
  9. scale — in music
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. march — music
  12. scale — size or range
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. spell — magic
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. mug — to rob
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. spell — letters
  21. mug — a face
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. saw — the tool

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