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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 116 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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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: wind · bowl · racket · content · cell · branch · face · lean

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. content — happy
  4. lean — to bend
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. content — the amount
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — to point toward
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. lean — thin
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. face — part of the head
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. cell — a phone
  22. branch — a division
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. wind — moving air

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