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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: season · dip · land · court · prune · branch · bound · fan

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. prune — to trim
  3. land — ground
  4. land — to come down
  5. bound — certain
  6. season — in sport
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. bound — tied together
  9. court — for sport
  10. dip — to sink
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bound — obliged
  14. land — a country
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. branch — a division
  18. court — of a king
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — of the year
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. prune — to trim

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