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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: field · capital · branch · kid · stem · dip · fork · bear

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. stem — to come from
  3. field — for sport
  4. capital — money
  5. kid — child
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. branch — a division
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — farmland
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. dip — to sink
  14. bear — the animal
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. capital — a city
  19. fork — in a road
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. bear — the animal
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. kid — to tease
  24. stem — a stem cell

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