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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: last · roll · hand · cell · branch · bear · march · lean

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. cell — a phone
  3. march — the month
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bear — the animal
  7. roll — a list
  8. last — final
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. march — music
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — to bend
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. roll — a cake
  17. last — finally
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. branch — a division
  21. last — to go on
  22. bear — the animal
  23. march — the month
  24. lean — thin

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