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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: mark · rock · hand · branch · net · bat · bore · present

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. present — the time now
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. branch — a division
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bore — to drill
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. mark — a trace
  9. hand — help
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. mark — a grade
  12. present — there
  13. bat — the animal
  14. net — in sport
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. present — a gift
  19. rock — a stone
  20. bore — to tire
  21. rock — music
  22. net — for catching
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. mark — to pay attention

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