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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — a coil
  3. can — a tin
  4. wake — a trail
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. current — of water
  8. spring — of water
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. current — happening now
  12. board — a committee
  13. march — the month
  14. board — to get on
  15. march — music
  16. can — a tin
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. branch — a division
  19. march — the month
  20. bat — the animal
  21. current — electric
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. can — to be able to
  24. bat — in an idiom

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