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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: field · branch · rest · clip · cap · swing · hide · sharp

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. rest — what's left
  5. field — farmland
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. rest — what's left
  8. swing — in golf
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. cap — of ice
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. sharp — clever
  13. clip — for paper
  14. rest — a break
  15. field — for sport
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — to cut
  18. cap — a lid
  19. branch — a division
  20. cap — a hat
  21. field — a subject
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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