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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. rash — a series
  3. band — a ring
  4. wound — an injury
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. branch — a division
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. rush — hurry
  11. wound — an injury
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. capital — a city
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. plane — a tool
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. band — a music group
  21. rash — hasty
  22. capital — money
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. plane — an aircraft

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