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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. season — in sport
  3. wind — moving air
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — finally
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. season — of the year
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — a practice
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. last — final
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — the sport
  16. drill — the tool
  17. plane — a tool
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. squash — to crush
  21. branch — a division
  22. wake — a trail
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. 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