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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.

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: kick · capital · club · branch · fall · spring · march · can

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. club — for golf
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. capital — money
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. can — a tin
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. spring — of water
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. can — a tin
  12. capital — a city
  13. kick — in football
  14. club — for dancing
  15. spring — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — to drop
  18. march — music
  19. fall — the season
  20. march — the month
  21. can — to be able to
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. march — the month
  24. club — a group

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