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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: object · suit · branch · bat · fork · spring · trunk · date

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. bat — the animal
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. branch — a division
  8. suit — to fit
  9. spring — the season
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. suit — clothes
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. date — the fruit
  14. spring — of water
  15. object — to protest
  16. object — a thing
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. object — an aim
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fork — in a road
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. spring — a coil

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