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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: branch · content · press · saw · leaves · ball · rash · shower

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. ball — a great time
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. content — happy
  5. shower — rain
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. rash — a series
  12. press — to push
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. press — a publisher
  15. shower — to wash
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. press — newspapers
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. saw — the tool
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. ball — a dance
  22. content — the amount
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. branch — a division

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