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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 120 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: plane · season · bay · field · current · cold · branch · fan

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. cold — not warm
  3. field — for sport
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. current — electric
  6. season — of the year
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. current — happening now
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. cold — an illness
  15. branch — a division
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. current — of water
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. field — a subject
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. field — farmland
  23. plane — a tool
  24. season — to add flavour

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