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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: branch · wake · roll · toast · bat · press · ground · face

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  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. branch — of a tree
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bat — the animal
  4. roll — a cake
  5. ground — a position
  6. face — to confront
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. face — to point toward
  10. press — newspapers
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. ground — crushed
  14. press — a publisher
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. press — to push
  18. branch — a division
  19. toast — bread
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. ground — the earth
  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