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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: scale · racket · branch · roll · chest · rock · rash · wound

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. chest — of your body
  3. branch — a division
  4. wound — an injury
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. roll — a cake
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. rock — a stone
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. rash — a series
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. chest — a box
  16. chest — of your body
  17. scale — in music
  18. rock — music
  19. rash — hasty
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. wound — an injury
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. scale — size or range
  24. roll — a list

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