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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. branch — a division
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. season — of the year
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. spell — letters
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. perch — the fish
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. season — in sport
  15. spell — a short time
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. spell — magic
  18. wind — moving air

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