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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: patient · land · fine · branch · kid · key · spell · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — in sport
  3. fine — all right
  4. kid — child
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. spell — magic
  7. land — to come down
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. key — in music
  10. branch — a division
  11. season — of the year
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. fine — high quality
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. key — the most important part
  16. kid — to tease
  17. land — ground
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. spell — a short time
  21. key — for a lock
  22. spell — letters
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. land — a country

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