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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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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: kick · cell · wax · fork · fan · object · branch · drill

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. cell — a phone
  4. object — to protest
  5. kick — in football
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. object — a thing
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wax — to grow
  10. drill — army training
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. cell — in biology
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. branch — a division
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. object — an aim
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. fork — in a road
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — the tool
  24. branch — of a bank

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