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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: face · branch · pop · swing · cell · charge · bat · mine

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. swing — in golf
  3. face — to point toward
  4. branch — a division
  5. pop — to visit
  6. swing — music
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. pop — music
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. cell — a phone
  11. swing — to play on
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. charge — electricity
  14. charge — in control
  15. cell — in biology
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. charge — a price
  22. pop — soda
  23. bat — the animal
  24. face — to confront

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