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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
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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: ground · bark · spring · leaves · straw · branch · mine · fork

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. fork — in a road
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — the earth
  9. spring — the season
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. spring — a coil
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. spring — of water
  18. bark — to shout
  19. branch — a division
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. mine — for digging
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. ground — a position
  24. fork — a garden tool

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