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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: chest · branch · kick · cap · wave · face · march · current

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. cap — a lid
  4. current — electric
  5. chest — of your body
  6. current — happening now
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. face — part of the head
  9. march — music
  10. branch — a division
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. march — the month
  13. face — to point toward
  14. face — to confront
  15. chest — a box
  16. march — the month
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cap — of ice
  20. cap — a hat
  21. current — of water
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. kick — in football

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