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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. clip — a video
  3. prune — to trim
  4. club — for dancing
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. face — part of the head
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. face — to point toward
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. branch — a division
  12. clip — for paper
  13. clip — to cut
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. face — to confront
  19. club — for golf
  20. field — for sport
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. field — farmland
  23. field — a subject
  24. club — a group

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