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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 · clip · bass · straw · rash · lie · hand · jam

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. clip — a video
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. hand — help
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — a division
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. clip — to cut
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. hand — in cards
  20. bass — low music
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. clip — for paper
  24. lie — to recline

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