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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: lie · present · chest · scale · racket · court · branch · straw

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. lie — to recline
  3. court — for sport
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — a box
  6. present — a gift
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — size or range
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. branch — a division
  12. chest — of your body
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. court — of a king
  16. present — the time now
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. present — there
  24. court — of law

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