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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.

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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: wake · mug · branch · saw · last · squash · bat · hand

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hand — help
  3. last — to go on
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. mug — to rob
  7. mug — a cup
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. squash — to crush
  13. branch — a division
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. last — final
  19. bat — the animal
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. mug — a face
  23. last — finally
  24. squash — the sport

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