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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 120 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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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: stick · fork · straw · band · land · branch · rock · face

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. land — to come down
  5. rock — a stone
  6. land — ground
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. face — part of the head
  11. face — to point toward
  12. fork — in a road
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. rock — music
  18. face — to confront
  19. band — a ring
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. branch — a division
  22. land — a country
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. band — a rubber band

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