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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
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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: hand · wave · spell · branch · march · snap · swing · firm

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. spell — letters
  4. hand — help
  5. firm — a company
  6. swing — to play on
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. march — music
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. hand — in cards
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. march — the month
  13. firm — steady
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. spell — magic
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. snap — to click
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. march — the month
  21. swing — in golf
  22. swing — music
  23. firm — decided
  24. spell — a short time

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