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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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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: land · bound · season · leaves · track · club · branch · rock

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. land — a country
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bound — obliged
  8. track — a song
  9. club — for golf
  10. rock — music
  11. season — of the year
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. club — for dancing
  15. bound — certain
  16. bound — tied together
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. land — to come down
  19. track — to keep track
  20. land — ground
  21. club — a group
  22. rock — a stone
  23. season — in sport
  24. track — a path

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