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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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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 · branch · lie · fork · pop · prune · wind · march

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. march — music
  3. branch — a division
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. fork — in a road
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. lie — to recline
  11. pop — music
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. march — the month
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pop — soda
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. march — the month
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pop — to visit
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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