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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: club · staff · tear · craft · band · branch

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. band — a music group
  3. craft — boats
  4. branch — a division
  5. staff — employees
  6. tear — from crying
  7. club — for dancing
  8. club — for golf
  9. staff — employees
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. band — a ring
  13. staff — a stick
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. craft — a skill
  16. tear — to rip
  17. club — a group
  18. tear — from crying

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