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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: craft · bark · plane · branch · mine · lean · spring · press

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. spring — the season
  3. craft — boats
  4. spring — of water
  5. plane — a tool
  6. craft — a skill
  7. press — a publisher
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — thin
  13. press — newspapers
  14. spring — a coil
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. lean — to bend
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. press — to push
  23. mine — for digging
  24. branch — of a bank

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