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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: wind · dip · mouse · ground · branch · bat · mate · trunk

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. ground — a position
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. branch — a division
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. mate — a friend
  18. bat — the animal
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. wind — moving air
  22. mate — a partner
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. ground — crushed

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