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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: bat · chest · roll · bore · leaves · craft · squash · branch

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. squash — the sport
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. bore — to drill
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — a box
  7. roll — a cake
  8. chest — of your body
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. craft — boats
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. squash — to crush
  13. craft — a skill
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. bat — the animal
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bore — to tire
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. branch — a division

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