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

Word bank: bat · last · branch · fall · club · bowl · saw · spring

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. last — final
  3. club — for dancing
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. saw — the tool
  6. fall — to drop
  7. last — finally
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bat — the animal
  10. fall — to drop
  11. club — a group
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. club — for golf
  15. spring — a coil
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. last — to go on
  18. spring — the season
  19. branch — a division
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. saw — the tool
  24. spring — of water

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