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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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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: bore · club · suit · branch · bank · clip · net · land

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. land — a country
  5. suit — in cards
  6. suit — clothes
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. land — to come down
  9. bank — for money
  10. clip — to cut
  11. club — for golf
  12. suit — to fit
  13. branch — a division
  14. bank — for money
  15. land — ground
  16. net — after costs
  17. club — for dancing
  18. bore — to tire
  19. net — for catching
  20. bank — of a river
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. club — a group
  23. bore — to drill
  24. net — in sport

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