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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 120 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 · wave · craft · cap · trunk · rash · snap · hand

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. hand — help
  3. snap — to click
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. cap — a hat
  6. craft — a skill
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. cap — of ice
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. rash — a series
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — in cards
  15. cap — a lid
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. craft — boats
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. rash — hasty
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. branch — of a tree

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