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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: branch · march · rush · date · root · field · hide · roll

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. field — farmland
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. march — the month
  5. branch — a division
  6. rush — hurry
  7. roll — a list
  8. date — the fruit
  9. field — for sport
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. roll — a cake
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. field — a subject
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. march — the month
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. march — music
  24. root — of a word

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