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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 120 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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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: track · rash · hand · ground · branch · bark · last · calf

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. ground — the earth
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. last — final
  5. track — a song
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. last — finally
  8. branch — a division
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. track — a path
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. ground — a position
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. ground — crushed
  18. track — to keep track
  19. hand — help
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. bark — to shout
  24. hand — in cards

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