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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: wake · ruler · field · kick · nail · band · staff · branch

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. band — a ring
  3. kick — in football
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. staff — employees
  8. field — farmland
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. field — for sport
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. branch — a division
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. wake — a trail
  18. band — a music group
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. field — a subject
  24. kick — with a leg

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