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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: ground · chest · bay · mark · band · fan · rock · branch

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. mark — a trace
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. rock — music
  11. chest — a box
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. rock — a stone
  15. branch — a division
  16. ground — a position
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a music group
  22. chest — of your body
  23. ground — the earth
  24. mark — a grade

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