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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.

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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: racket · branch · season · bound · current · hand · pass · squash

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. squash — the sport
  3. bound — obliged
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. pass — a permit
  10. season — in sport
  11. bound — tied together
  12. current — electric
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. hand — help
  15. bound — certain
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. squash — to crush
  23. season — of the year
  24. current — happening now

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