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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: spring · fork · kid · track · plane · race · branch · face

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. track — a path
  3. face — to confront
  4. branch — a division
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. race — humankind
  8. kid — to tease
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. race — a contest
  11. race — the arms race
  12. face — part of the head
  13. spring — of water
  14. plane — a tool
  15. track — to keep track
  16. spring — a coil
  17. face — to point toward
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. track — a song
  20. kid — child
  21. spring — the season
  22. fork — in a road
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. plane — an aircraft

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