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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 120 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: swing · branch · dip · kid · bass · band · deal · last

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. band — a ring
  3. kid — child
  4. bass — low music
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. swing — music
  8. band — a music group
  9. kid — to tease
  10. last — finally
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — to handle
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. branch — a division
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. swing — in golf
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. last — final
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. dip — to sink
  23. swing — to play on
  24. dip — a sauce

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