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

Word bank: dip · field · content · branch · kick · ground

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. field — a subject
  3. content — the amount
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. ground — crushed
  6. field — farmland
  7. dip — to sink
  8. ground — the earth
  9. ground — a position
  10. kick — in football
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. content — happy
  16. field — for sport
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — a division

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