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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: craft · band · hide · chair · march · branch · ground · game

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. band — a ring
  5. band — a music group
  6. ground — the earth
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. branch — a division
  12. craft — boats
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. craft — a skill
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — a leader
  24. ground — crushed

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