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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: branch · fork · cue · perch · clip · staff · game · race

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. staff — employees
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. game — wild animals
  10. race — the arms race
  11. staff — employees
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — for pool
  14. staff — a stick
  15. fork — in a road
  16. clip — to cut
  17. race — a contest
  18. branch — a division
  19. cue — a hint
  20. race — humankind
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. clip — a video
  23. game — a match
  24. clip — for paper

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