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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: swing · snap · branch · wind · file · field · bay · rest

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. snap — to click
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. swing — music
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. swing — in golf
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. swing — to play on
  12. file — a line of people
  13. field — for sport
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wind — moving air
  16. file — a tool
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. file — a document
  19. rest — a break
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. rest — what's left
  22. field — a subject
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. field — farmland

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