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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: track · mine · rash · chest · branch · capital · saw · rock

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. branch — a division
  5. rock — music
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mine — for digging
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — money
  14. saw — the tool
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. rock — a stone
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rash — a series
  19. chest — of your body
  20. track — a path
  21. rash — hasty
  22. track — to keep track
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. track — a song

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