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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 116 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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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: bat · branch · plane · rock · pitcher · hand · rule · perch

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. rock — a stone
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rule — government
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. branch — a division
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. plane — a tool
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. rule — a law
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. hand — help
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. perch — for a bird

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