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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. lean — to bend
  4. branch — a division
  5. current — happening now
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — the animal
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. fork — in a road
  11. current — electric
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. current — of water
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. fall — to drop
  20. lean — thin
  21. chair — a leader
  22. fall — the season
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. fork — a garden tool

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