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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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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: bank · field · bat · staff · snap · saw · leaves · branch

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. field — farmland
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. staff — employees
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. bank — for money
  7. field — for sport
  8. bat — the animal
  9. field — a subject
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. bank — for money
  16. staff — employees
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. branch — a division
  23. bank — of a river
  24. leaves — of a tree

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