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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: tear · rush · bat · rock · season · march · content · branch

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. season — of the year
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rush — hurry
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. content — the amount
  10. season — in sport
  11. march — the month
  12. rock — a stone
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bat — the animal
  15. tear — to rip
  16. rock — music
  17. march — music
  18. branch — a division
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. tear — from crying
  21. march — the month
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. content — happy
  24. tear — from crying

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