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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: race · content · mouse · band · stem · season · saw · branch

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. race — humankind
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. branch — a division
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. race — the arms race
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. band — a music group
  13. race — a contest
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. content — happy
  16. saw — the tool
  17. content — the amount
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. stem — to come from
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — of the year
  24. band — a ring

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