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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: squash · deal · clip · scale · branch · net · tube · object

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  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. deal — an agreement
  2. deal — to handle
  3. object — a thing
  4. net — after costs
  5. tube — the underground
  6. branch — a division
  7. squash — the sport
  8. squash — to crush
  9. object — to protest
  10. clip — to cut
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. clip — for paper
  13. net — in sport
  14. tube — a container
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. scale — in music
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. object — an aim
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. net — for catching
  21. clip — a video
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — for weighing
  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