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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: rash · land · bowl · scale · branch · saw · bat · lean

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. lean — to bend
  3. saw — the tool
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. land — a country
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. saw — the tool
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. branch — a division
  16. lean — thin
  17. land — ground
  18. scale — in music
  19. scale — size or range
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. rash — a series
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. rash — hasty

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