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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: lean · swing · trunk · squash · spring · suit · chair · branch

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. lean — thin
  6. suit — in cards
  7. branch — a division
  8. lean — to bend
  9. swing — in golf
  10. squash — the sport
  11. spring — a coil
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. swing — music
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. suit — to fit
  16. swing — to play on
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. chair — a leader
  20. suit — clothes
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. squash — to crush
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. spring — of water

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