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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: season · present · tube · branch · spell · court · drill · club

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. season — of the year
  3. branch — a division
  4. court — of a king
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. present — a gift
  7. spell — letters
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. club — a group
  10. tube — a container
  11. season — in sport
  12. court — for sport
  13. drill — a practice
  14. drill — the tool
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. tube — the underground
  17. club — for golf
  18. present — the time now
  19. spell — a short time
  20. court — of law
  21. club — for dancing
  22. drill — army training
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. spell — magic

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