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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: capital · snap · mate · track · wind · branch · roll · tube

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. track — a song
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. wind — moving air
  7. tube — a container
  8. branch — a division
  9. roll — a list
  10. capital — a city
  11. wind — moving air
  12. track — a path
  13. track — to keep track
  14. capital — money
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. snap — to click
  18. mate — to breed
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. roll — a cake
  22. mate — a partner
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. tube — the underground

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