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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: drill · pit · wind · pop · straw · branch · bowl · squash

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. pop — music
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. pop — soda
  7. pit — a hole
  8. wind — moving air
  9. drill — a practice
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. drill — army training
  14. pop — to visit
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. drill — the tool
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. squash — the sport
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. wind — moving air
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. pit — in a race

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