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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pop — soda
  3. court — of a king
  4. present — a gift
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. season — of the year
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. march — the month
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. stem — to come from
  13. pop — to visit
  14. present — there
  15. present — the time now
  16. wind — moving air
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. march — music
  19. branch — a division
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. season — in sport
  22. wind — moving air
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. march — the month

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