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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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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: dip · court · swing · arm · wind · bore · branch · lean

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. dip — to sink
  3. branch — a division
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. court — for sport
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. lean — to bend
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bore — to tire
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bore — to drill
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. court — of law
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. swing — to play on
  17. wind — moving air
  18. swing — in golf
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. lean — thin
  22. court — of a king
  23. swing — music
  24. branch — of a bank

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