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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: drill · fork · ground · branch · wind · hand · game · rule

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. wind — moving air
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. drill — a practice
  5. wind — moving air
  6. ground — a position
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. hand — in cards
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — government
  12. hand — help
  13. drill — army training
  14. ground — the earth
  15. ground — crushed
  16. branch — a division
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. game — a match
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. drill — the 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