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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. branch — a division
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. wind — moving air
  6. spell — a short time
  7. season — in sport
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bark — to shout
  10. spell — letters
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. spell — magic
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. craft — a skill
  15. season — of the year
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — a measure
  20. mine — for digging
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. craft — boats

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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