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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: temple · perch · bat · capital · craft · pop · branch · mark

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. branch — a division
  3. craft — a skill
  4. capital — a city
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. perch — the fish
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. capital — money
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. mark — a trace
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. pop — music
  16. mark — a grade
  17. craft — boats
  18. bat — the animal
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. pop — soda
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for baseball

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