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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: branch · hide · capital · cabinet · bass · saw · march · mouse

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. march — the month
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. bass — the fish
  8. march — the month
  9. capital — a city
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. march — music
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. bass — low music
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. capital — money
  21. branch — a division
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. saw — the tool

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