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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 · jam · game · mug · cold · march · rest · hand

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. rest — what's left
  3. rest — what's left
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. hand — in cards
  9. branch — a division
  10. march — the month
  11. cold — an illness
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. game — wild animals
  16. rest — a break
  17. march — music
  18. march — the month
  19. mug — to rob
  20. cold — not warm
  21. hand — help
  22. mug — a cup
  23. mug — a face
  24. game — a kind of play

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