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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: pop · wound · saw · mine · pitcher · root · branch · swing

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. mine — for digging
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. swing — in golf
  7. root — of a word
  8. pop — soda
  9. root — the cause
  10. wound — an injury
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. swing — music
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wound — an injury
  15. saw — the tool
  16. swing — to play on
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. pop — music
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. saw — the tool

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