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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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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: bore · branch · land · season · deal · cap · game · clip

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — a division
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cap — of ice
  8. clip — to cut
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. clip — a video
  12. season — in sport
  13. land — a country
  14. game — a match
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bore — to drill
  17. cap — a lid
  18. game — wild animals
  19. season — of the year
  20. clip — for paper
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — to handle
  23. land — ground
  24. land — to come down

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