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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 120 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: bass · tube · club · wound · rock · fall · branch · chest

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. bass — low music
  3. rock — a stone
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. fall — the season
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. chest — of your body
  11. fall — to drop
  12. wound — an injury
  13. fall — to drop
  14. club — a group
  15. tube — the underground
  16. chest — of your body
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. club — for dancing
  19. bass — the fish
  20. chest — a box
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. club — for golf
  23. rock — music
  24. tube — a container

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