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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: kid · tear · rash · leaves · branch · fork · calf · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — music
  3. rash — hasty
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. branch — a division
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. tear — to rip
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. fork — in a road
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. rash — a series
  15. kid — child
  16. tear — from crying
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. kid — to tease
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. pop — soda
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. 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