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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. ball — a dance
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. fall — to drop
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. current — of water
  7. fall — the season
  8. branch — a division
  9. current — electric
  10. fall — to drop
  11. current — happening now
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. ground — a position
  14. march — the month
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — the earth
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — to crush
  19. ball — a great time
  20. fork — in a road
  21. march — the month
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. march — music

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