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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. row — a line
  3. field — for sport
  4. branch — a division
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. field — farmland
  8. roll — a cake
  9. roll — a list
  10. season — of the year
  11. march — music
  12. march — the month
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. field — a subject
  18. march — the month
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. season — in sport
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. stand — to bear
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. row — to paddle

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