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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. branch — a division
  3. shower — to wash
  4. track — a song
  5. shower — rain
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. current — electric
  8. current — happening now
  9. track — to keep track
  10. squash — the sport
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. track — a path
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. wake — a trail
  17. squash — to crush
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. content — the amount
  21. current — of water
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. content — happy
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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