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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: mug · branch · spring · game · hand · present · bowl · snap

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. spring — the season
  4. game — a match
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. mug — to rob
  9. spring — a coil
  10. present — there
  11. present — a gift
  12. branch — a division
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. mug — a cup
  17. hand — in cards
  18. mug — a face
  19. spring — of water
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. game — wild animals
  22. present — the time now
  23. hand — help
  24. bowl — a football final

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