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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: ground · branch · mouse · bat · mine · rock · spell · calf

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. branch — a division
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. spell — a short time
  5. rock — music
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. spell — letters
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. spell — magic
  13. ground — the earth
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. mine — for digging
  17. ground — a position
  18. ground — crushed
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. rock — a stone
  24. bat — in an idiom

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