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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 116 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: rush · bat · clip · swing · branch · firm · club · suit

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. club — a group
  3. rush — hurry
  4. firm — a company
  5. suit — to fit
  6. club — for dancing
  7. clip — a video
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. firm — steady
  10. bat — the animal
  11. club — for golf
  12. swing — music
  13. clip — to cut
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. suit — clothes
  16. suit — in cards
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. branch — a division
  21. swing — to play on
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. firm — decided
  24. swing — in golf

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