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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: wind · date · pit · mate · racket · fork · branch · shower

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pit — a hole
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. mate — a friend
  11. mate — a partner
  12. shower — to wash
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mate — to breed
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. shower — rain
  18. fork — in a road
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. date — the fruit
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. branch — a division
  23. pit — in a race
  24. date — on the calendar

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