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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: chip · suit · ball · cold · lean · branch · rock · last

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. lean — thin
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rock — music
  5. lean — to bend
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. branch — a division
  8. chip — for betting
  9. ball — a dance
  10. cold — not warm
  11. suit — clothes
  12. chip — to eat
  13. last — finally
  14. cold — an illness
  15. rock — a stone
  16. suit — to fit
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. last — final
  21. last — to go on
  22. ball — a great time
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. branch — of a bank

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