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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: staff · stick · straw · kick · ground · wake · branch · club

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. staff — employees
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. club — a group
  10. ground — a position
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. staff — employees
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. wake — a trail
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kick — in football
  19. club — for dancing
  20. club — for golf
  21. ground — crushed
  22. staff — a stick
  23. branch — a division
  24. straw — dry grass

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