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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: cold · capital · march · racket · ball · nail · pop · branch

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. ball — a great time
  8. branch — a division
  9. march — music
  10. capital — money
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. pop — soda
  13. pop — to visit
  14. march — the month
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. capital — a city
  18. ball — a dance
  19. cold — not warm
  20. march — the month
  21. cold — an illness
  22. pop — music
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. racket — for tennis

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