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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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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: bat · field · branch · bay · root · rock · net · fork

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. rock — music
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bat — the animal
  5. branch — a division
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. field — farmland
  9. net — after costs
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. root — of a plant
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. root — of a word
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. net — for catching
  19. net — in sport
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. field — for sport
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. field — a subject
  24. root — the cause

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