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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. march — music
  3. fork — in a road
  4. clip — to cut
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. toast — bread
  14. sharp — clever
  15. clip — for paper
  16. march — the month
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. march — the month
  20. clip — a video
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. bark — to shout
  24. branch — of a tree

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