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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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. spring — a coil
  3. bark — to shout
  4. lean — to bend
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. current — electric
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of law
  11. spring — of water
  12. stand — to bear
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. fork — in a road
  16. current — of water
  17. spring — the season
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. court — of a king
  20. current — happening now
  21. lean — thin
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — of a tree
  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