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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: branch · band · shower · arm · rule · chest · bore · season

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. chest — of your body
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. season — of the year
  8. band — a ring
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. rule — a law
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. branch — a division
  15. shower — to wash
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — to drill
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. chest — of your body
  21. shower — rain
  22. season — in sport
  23. chest — a box
  24. rule — government

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