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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: mark · branch · court · swing · root · snap · game · fall

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. fall — to drop
  3. swing — in golf
  4. snap — to click
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. branch — a division
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mark — a grade
  9. root — the cause
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. swing — to play on
  12. game — wild animals
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. court — of law
  15. fall — the season
  16. court — of a king
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. court — for sport
  19. swing — music
  20. fall — to drop
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — of a plant
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. branch — of a tree

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