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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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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. wake — a trail
  8. fork — in a road
  9. spring — a coil
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. branch — a division
  12. spring — the season
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. rash — a series
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. rash — hasty
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. spring — of water
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. lash — an eyelash

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