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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · spring · branch · wave · current · march · squash · bear

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. march — the month
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. spring — the season
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. current — electric
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. tear — to rip
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. squash — to crush
  14. bear — the animal
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. march — the month
  17. spring — of water
  18. bear — the animal
  19. branch — a division
  20. tear — from crying
  21. current — of water
  22. current — happening now
  23. tear — from crying
  24. march — music

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