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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: field · craft · wind · rush · wave · march · branch · fork

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. march — the month
  3. march — the month
  4. branch — a division
  5. craft — boats
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. wind — moving air
  9. march — music
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. field — farmland
  12. craft — a skill
  13. wind — moving air
  14. fork — in a road
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. rush — hurry
  19. field — a subject
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. field — for sport
  24. wave — of the sea

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