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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pitcher · mug · court · tube · chair · band · branch · wind

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. band — a music group
  5. court — of law
  6. court — of a king
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. mug — to rob
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. court — for sport
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. tube — a container
  13. band — a ring
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mug — a cup
  17. mug — a face
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — a division
  20. tube — the underground
  21. wind — moving air
  22. chair — a leader
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. chair — to sit on

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