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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: hide · march · branch · fan · field · band · present · rock

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. field — for sport
  3. rock — a stone
  4. band — a ring
  5. branch — a division
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. field — farmland
  11. present — there
  12. rock — music
  13. present — the time now
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. field — a subject
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. band — a music group
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. march — the month
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. present — a gift

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