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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 120 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: mate · bat · hide · season · race · snap · branch · bank

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. bank — for money
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bank — for money
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. snap — to click
  11. race — the arms race
  12. branch — a division
  13. bank — of a river
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. race — humankind
  18. season — of the year
  19. bat — the animal
  20. season — in sport
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. race — a contest
  24. hide — animal skin

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