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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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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: hide · scale · wind · deal · race · object · date · branch

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. race — a contest
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. object — to protest
  6. branch — a division
  7. deal — to handle
  8. wind — moving air
  9. object — an aim
  10. wind — moving air
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. race — the arms race
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. object — a thing
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. date — the fruit
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. race — humankind

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