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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: branch · game · board · clip · field · racket · band · fine

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. field — for sport
  3. clip — a video
  4. band — a ring
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a match
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. board — a committee
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. board — to get on
  13. clip — for paper
  14. branch — a division
  15. band — a music group
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. fine — all right
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. clip — to cut
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. fine — high quality
  24. racket — for tennis

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