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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pound · spell · branch · racket · ground · tear · craft · net

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. spell — magic
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. spell — letters
  5. pound — a weight
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. ground — the earth
  8. tear — to rip
  9. net — after costs
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. branch — a division
  12. net — for catching
  13. ground — a position
  14. spell — a short time
  15. tear — from crying
  16. ground — crushed
  17. net — in sport
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. tear — from crying
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. craft — a skill
  23. craft — boats
  24. racket — for tennis

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