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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. track — a song
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. track — to keep track
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. branch — a division
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. wound — an injury
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. fork — in a road
  17. craft — boats
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. track — a path
  21. clip — a video
  22. wound — an injury
  23. clip — to cut
  24. craft — a skill

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