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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. cold — an illness
  3. band — a music group
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. track — a path
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. last — final
  13. cold — not warm
  14. band — a ring
  15. track — a song
  16. branch — a division
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. track — to keep track
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. season — of the year
  23. last — to go on
  24. last — finally

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