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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. spell — a short time
  3. wind — moving air
  4. branch — a division
  5. present — a gift
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. bound — tied together
  8. season — in sport
  9. mate — a friend
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. bound — certain
  12. wind — moving air
  13. present — the time now
  14. bound — obliged
  15. mate — to breed
  16. spell — magic
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — money
  20. mate — a partner
  21. spell — letters
  22. present — there
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. capital — a city

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