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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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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: ground · wake · branch · mine · track · ball · shower · net

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. track — a song
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ground — the earth
  7. track — to keep track
  8. ground — crushed
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. wake — a trail
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — after costs
  16. shower — to wash
  17. track — a path
  18. ground — a position
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. branch — a division
  21. ball — a dance
  22. shower — rain
  23. net — for catching
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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