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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: net · branch · wake · rash · squash · pitcher · race · swing

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. net — after costs
  4. squash — to crush
  5. swing — in golf
  6. net — in sport
  7. rash — a series
  8. branch — a division
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. race — humankind
  11. rash — hasty
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — to play on
  14. net — for catching
  15. squash — the sport
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. race — the arms race
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wake — a trail
  24. branch — of a bank

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