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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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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 · branch · last · wound · wind · kick · pitch · firm

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. chip — to eat
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. chip — for betting
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wind — moving air
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. branch — a division
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — steady
  15. last — final
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. last — to go on
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pitch — completely
  22. firm — decided
  23. kick — in football
  24. last — finally

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