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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: shower · chair · racket · swing · leaves · branch · deal · fine

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. fine — high quality
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. deal — to handle
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. shower — rain
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. fine — all right
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. chair — a leader
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. swing — in golf
  21. branch — a division
  22. shower — to wash
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — music

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