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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: march · land · bear · branch · degree · trunk · fork · rash

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. march — the month
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. land — ground
  6. march — the month
  7. bear — the animal
  8. land — a country
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. rash — a series
  11. degree — an amount
  12. fork — in a road
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. land — to come down
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. branch — a division
  17. bear — the animal
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. degree — temperature
  21. march — music
  22. degree — from a university
  23. rash — hasty
  24. trunk — of a car

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