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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: chair · squash · temple · wake · bowl · hand · tear · branch

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. hand — in cards
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. chair — a leader
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. squash — the sport
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. wake — a trail
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. branch — a division
  18. squash — to crush
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. hand — help
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. tear — from crying

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