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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 116 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: board · land · spring · branch · bear · bark · chip · hand

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. spring — the season
  3. chip — for betting
  4. spring — a coil
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. board — a committee
  9. chip — to eat
  10. board — to get on
  11. hand — help
  12. branch — a division
  13. bear — the animal
  14. spring — of water
  15. land — to come down
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bear — the animal
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. chip — in a computer

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