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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. season — of the year
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. track — a song
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. clip — for paper
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. branch — a division
  11. clip — to cut
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. mug — a cup
  14. row — to paddle
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — to grow
  18. mug — to rob
  19. track — a path
  20. mug — a face
  21. track — to keep track
  22. clip — a video
  23. row — a line
  24. row — a quarrel

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