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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: chair · branch · ball · racket · wake · bore · wind · row

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. wake — a trail
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. ball — a dance
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. chair — a leader
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. bore — to drill
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. ball — a great time
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — moving air
  22. row — a line
  23. wake — before a funeral
  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