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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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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: fine · present · perch · spring · row · branch · last · firm

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. perch — the fish
  3. last — to go on
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. firm — steady
  6. firm — a company
  7. row — to paddle
  8. last — final
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. firm — decided
  11. spring — the season
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. spring — a coil
  14. present — a gift
  15. last — finally
  16. branch — a division
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. present — there
  19. row — a line
  20. spring — of water
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. present — the time now
  24. fine — all right

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