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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: coach · pop · leaves · branch · game · hand · can · bat

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. bat — the animal
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — help
  9. can — a tin
  10. branch — a division
  11. game — wild animals
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. pop — music
  18. can — to be able to
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. pop — to visit
  21. can — a tin
  22. game — a match
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. bat — for baseball

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