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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: stick · game · wound · branch · cap · racket · pass · trunk

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. pass — a permit
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. wound — an injury
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. cap — a hat
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. game — a match
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. branch — a division
  18. wound — an injury
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. cap — of ice
  21. cap — a lid
  22. game — wild animals
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. pass — to spend time

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