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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: season · root · branch · land · mark · clip · fall · spring

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. clip — a video
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. fall — the season
  6. mark — a trace
  7. root — of a plant
  8. clip — to cut
  9. spring — the season
  10. land — ground
  11. land — to come down
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. land — a country
  14. clip — for paper
  15. season — in sport
  16. season — of the year
  17. mark — a grade
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. root — the cause
  20. spring — of water
  21. branch — a division
  22. root — of a word
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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