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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: bound · net · branch · rest · pop · face · bat · toast

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. pop — soda
  3. bound — certain
  4. pop — music
  5. rest — a break
  6. toast — bread
  7. bound — tied together
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. face — to point toward
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. rest — what's left
  12. face — part of the head
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. face — to confront
  15. net — in sport
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. pop — to visit
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bound — obliged
  21. net — for catching
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. rest — what's left
  24. net — after costs

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