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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: ruler · bowl · tear · bay · date · spring · bat · branch

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — a coil
  4. date — the fruit
  5. spring — the season
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. tear — from crying
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. bat — the animal

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