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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: craft · branch · club · key · stem · chest · kid · land

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. craft — boats
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. club — for dancing
  5. land — ground
  6. chest — of your body
  7. land — a country
  8. branch — a division
  9. club — for golf
  10. kid — child
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kid — to tease
  14. chest — of your body
  15. key — the most important part
  16. stem — to come from
  17. key — in music
  18. club — a group
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. craft — a skill
  21. land — to come down
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. key — for a lock
  24. chest — a box

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