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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: plane · mouse · pitch · leaves · land · band · sharp · branch

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. band — a music group
  5. land — ground
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. plane — a tool
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. land — a country
  16. pitch — completely
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. branch — a division
  19. band — a ring
  20. land — to come down
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. leaves — to go away

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