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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: branch · chair · lean · last · band · pop · ground · coach

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. band — a ring
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. ground — crushed
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. ground — the earth
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. pop — to visit
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. last — to go on
  12. chair — a leader
  13. lean — to bend
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. last — final
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. band — a music group
  20. pop — music
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. pop — soda
  23. last — finally
  24. branch — a division

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