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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: kick · track · wind · branch · fine · sharp · ground · perch

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. fine — all right
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. track — a path
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — the earth
  10. fine — high quality
  11. track — a song
  12. wind — moving air
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. ground — a position
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. wind — moving air
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. track — to keep track
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. perch — the fish
  21. kick — in football
  22. branch — a division
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. fine — a penalty

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