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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: content · craft · wind · mate · cabinet · spell · spring · branch

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. craft — boats
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. spring — a coil
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. spell — magic
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. content — happy
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. craft — a skill
  14. branch — a division
  15. mate — a partner
  16. spring — the season
  17. spell — a short time
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. mate — to breed
  21. content — the amount
  22. spell — letters
  23. spring — of water
  24. mate — a friend

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