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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: branch · face · snap · straw · pop · fork · wake · fall

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. pop — music
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fork — in a road
  6. wake — a trail
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. snap — to click
  9. fall — to drop
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. branch — a division
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. pop — to visit
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — part of the head
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. fall — the season
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. face — to confront

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