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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 120 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: wave · mouse · branch · craft · cold · fan · content · spell

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. craft — a skill
  6. content — happy
  7. craft — boats
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — a short time
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. content — the amount
  18. cold — not warm
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. spell — magic
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. wave — with your hand

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