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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: branch · foot · mouse · clip · pound · bat · rash · club

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. pound — a weight
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. bat — the animal
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. club — for golf
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. branch — a division
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. clip — a video
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. club — for dancing
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. foot — a measure
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rash — a series
  21. club — a group
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. clip — for paper
  24. pound — for dogs

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