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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: can · band · march · craft · branch · court · last · mug

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. band — a ring
  3. court — of a king
  4. can — to be able to
  5. court — of law
  6. mug — a cup
  7. march — the month
  8. last — final
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. last — to go on
  11. craft — a skill
  12. last — finally
  13. can — a tin
  14. mug — to rob
  15. court — for sport
  16. band — a music group
  17. craft — boats
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. can — a tin
  22. mug — a face
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. branch — of a bank

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