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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: spell · game · branch · fall · saw · bulb · track · mine

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — letters
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — wild animals
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. saw — the tool
  9. mine — for digging
  10. spell — a short time
  11. fall — to drop
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. fall — the season
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. track — a path
  17. track — a song
  18. bulb — for light
  19. branch — a division
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. bulb — for light
  22. saw — the tool
  23. track — to keep track
  24. game — a match

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