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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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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: wound · land · rash · branch · squash · rest · spring · toast

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. spring — the season
  4. land — a country
  5. rash — hasty
  6. land — to come down
  7. rest — what's left
  8. branch — a division
  9. squash — the sport
  10. rash — a series
  11. spring — of water
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. rest — what's left
  14. wound — an injury
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. wound — an injury
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. spring — a coil
  20. toast — bread
  21. rest — a break
  22. squash — to crush
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. land — ground

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