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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: last · fall · branch · stick · game · fan · mark · tear

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. tear — from crying
  3. game — wild animals
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. last — finally
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. game — a match
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. mark — a grade
  14. mark — a trace
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. branch — a division
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — final
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. tear — to rip

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