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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 116 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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. season — of the year
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. drill — army training
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. saw — the tool
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. court — for sport
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. drill — a practice
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. court — of a king
  16. saw — the tool
  17. branch — a division
  18. drill — the tool
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. dip — to sink
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. stem — to come from
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — to add flavour

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