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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
468
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 · date · track · branch · squash · root · perch · kid

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. squash — to crush
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. kid — to tease
  6. root — the cause
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. kid — child
  10. track — a path
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — a division
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. track — a song
  19. season — in sport
  20. root — of a plant
  21. date — the fruit
  22. squash — the sport
  23. root — of a word
  24. track — to keep track

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