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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: clip · fork · fine · net · temple · mark · branch · spring

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. net — in sport
  4. spring — a coil
  5. clip — to cut
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. branch — a division
  8. mark — a grade
  9. net — after costs
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. fine — all right
  17. fork — in a road
  18. clip — a video
  19. net — for catching
  20. clip — for paper
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. mark — a trace
  24. fine — high quality

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