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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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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: field · tear · hand · clip · pass · stick · branch · mate

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. tear — from crying
  3. field — for sport
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. mate — a partner
  8. field — a subject
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. tear — from crying
  11. clip — a video
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. field — farmland
  14. clip — for paper
  15. mate — a friend
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. mate — to breed
  18. pass — a permit
  19. tear — to rip
  20. clip — to cut
  21. hand — help
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. pass — to spend time

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