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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: season · fan · branch · wave · hide · sharp · clip · bay

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. clip — a video
  6. branch — a division
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. clip — to cut
  9. season — in sport
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. sharp — clever
  13. clip — for paper
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. season — of the year
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. hide — animal skin

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