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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — to rip
  8. branch — a division
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mate — to breed
  11. wound — an injury
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. scale — size or range
  14. scale — in music
  15. mate — a partner
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. mate — a friend
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. field — farmland
  20. field — for sport
  21. field — a subject
  22. tear — from crying
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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