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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 116 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: bat · safe · season · craft · sharp · branch · race · band

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. branch — a division
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. sharp — clever
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a music group
  7. race — the arms race
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. craft — boats
  11. season — in sport
  12. race — a contest
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. season — of the year
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. craft — a skill
  19. bat — the animal
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. band — a ring
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. race — humankind

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