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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: season · branch · wind · bowl · track · wake · court · lean

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. season — in sport
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. branch — a division
  7. court — for sport
  8. track — a song
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. track — to keep track
  12. wake — a trail
  13. court — of a king
  14. lean — to bend
  15. season — of the year
  16. court — of law
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. track — a path
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. lean — thin
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. branch — of a tree

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