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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: march · swing · date · branch · chest · craft · lean · court

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. craft — boats
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — to play on
  7. chest — of your body
  8. march — the month
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. chest — of your body
  11. court — of a king
  12. branch — a division
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. chest — a box
  17. craft — a skill
  18. swing — music
  19. court — for sport
  20. lean — to bend
  21. march — the month
  22. court — of law
  23. march — music
  24. lean — thin

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