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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: row · spring · branch · court · calf · perch · mine · trunk

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. row — a line
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. perch — the fish
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. spring — a coil
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. court — of a king
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. row — to paddle
  19. mine — for digging
  20. spring — of water
  21. court — for sport
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. court — of law
  24. branch — a division

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