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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.

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: hand · mark · stick · pitcher · branch · fork · court · wound

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. mark — a trace
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. mark — a grade
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wound — an injury
  8. hand — help
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. court — for sport
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. wound — an injury
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. fork — in a road
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. branch — a division
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. court — of law
  23. hand — in cards
  24. court — of a king

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