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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 116 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 a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. branch — a division
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. craft — boats
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. wound — an injury
  11. craft — a skill
  12. fork — in a road
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. snap — to click
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. mark — a grade
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. court — for sport
  20. dip — to sink
  21. court — of law
  22. mark — a trace
  23. wound — an injury
  24. dip — a sauce

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