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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: chest · branch · pop · club · kid · racket · rest · tube

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. chest — a box
  3. pop — soda
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. rest — what's left
  6. kid — to tease
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. pop — music
  9. chest — of your body
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. rest — a break
  12. club — a group
  13. kid — child
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — the underground
  18. chest — of your body
  19. tube — a container
  20. club — for dancing
  21. branch — a division
  22. rest — what's left
  23. pop — to visit
  24. racket — for tennis

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