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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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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: lean · branch · court · season · bowl · roll · pitch · squash

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. court — of law
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. squash — the sport
  5. lean — to bend
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — for sport
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. lean — thin
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. roll — a cake
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. season — of the year
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. squash — to crush
  21. pitch — completely
  22. roll — a list
  23. season — in sport
  24. squash — the vegetable

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