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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 120 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: pound · squash · lie · cold · scale · file · swing · branch

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. swing — in golf
  3. scale — in music
  4. cold — not warm
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. swing — music
  7. pound — a weight
  8. branch — a division
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. file — a line of people
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. swing — to play on
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. squash — to crush
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. lie — to recline
  18. cold — an illness
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. file — a document
  21. squash — the sport
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. file — a tool

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