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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: bass · club · leaves · branch · stand · land · spell · mine

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. land — a country
  3. spell — letters
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. stand — to bear
  7. mine — for digging
  8. bass — low music
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. club — for dancing
  11. branch — a division
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. club — for golf
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. land — ground
  16. spell — magic
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. spell — a short time
  21. club — a group
  22. land — to come down
  23. bass — the fish
  24. leaves — of a tree

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