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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: last · fork · cold · foot · court · object · branch · tear

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. tear — to rip
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. object — an aim
  6. court — of law
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. last — finally
  10. fork — in a road
  11. last — to go on
  12. object — to protest
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. court — of a king
  16. cold — an illness
  17. tear — from crying
  18. object — a thing
  19. court — for sport
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. last — final
  22. tear — from crying
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. branch — a division

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