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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: scale · branch · land · rush · game · club · band · lie

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. club — for dancing
  4. land — ground
  5. game — wild animals
  6. land — to come down
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. club — for golf
  9. band — a ring
  10. lie — to recline
  11. land — a country
  12. game — a match
  13. band — a music group
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. scale — size or range
  17. branch — a division
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. club — a group
  20. scale — in music
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. rush — hurry
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. branch — of a tree

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