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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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Word bank
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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: wake · toast · cabinet · fork · fan · branch · bear · degree

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. toast — bread
  4. wake — a trail
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. degree — from a university
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bear — the animal
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. branch — a division
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. bear — the animal
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. fork — in a road
  22. degree — temperature
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. wake — before a funeral

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