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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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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: face · coach · lean · mine · clip · pit · branch · suit

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. clip — a video
  6. lean — to bend
  7. pit — in a race
  8. suit — clothes
  9. clip — to cut
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. face — to confront
  12. face — to point toward
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. suit — in cards
  17. clip — for paper
  18. lean — thin
  19. mine — for digging
  20. suit — to fit
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. pit — a hole
  24. branch — a division

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